Fairy Tail: Collision Crusaders
by SSJrandommaster
Summary: The Fairy Tail series has touched the hearts of many...and when the opportunity comes to jump head first into it, a certain quartet begins their crusade...Hardly a town in Fiore hasn't heard the tales of Fairy Tail's rising stars. What makes those four so special? Who the hell do you think they are, they're Team Souzou! Fairy Tail's newest team, hailing from another world!
1. Trouble in Olbesk

_**Warning: The following fic contains OCs based loosely on the four authors who RPed out this story. Any other characters belong to their respective owner. This story is the result of an RP. Please read with this in mind if you continue.**_

* * *

**Chapter 1: Trouble in Olbesk**

* * *

The city of Olbesk, situated in the land of Fiore. A fairly large city, the buildings made mostly out of marble. The closer a person got to the center, the closer they'd be to the governing body's local headquarters. The governing body; the Magic Council. The headquarters was a fairly large castle, guarded thoroughly by Rune Knights.

It is here our story begins.

* * *

In the city streets, a fair distance from the castle at the center, a young lady was walking around. She had blond hair, brown eyes…and quite the figure. She wore a white tanktop with blue lines throughout and on the edges of the fabric. She also wore a blue skirt which came down to mid-upper thigh, held in place by a brown leather belt. Her hair was held up in a sort of ponytail by a blue ribbon. On one of her hips appeared to be a set of keys; three gold, the rest silver. The other had…what appeared to be a whip looped onto it. Her brown leather boots—which seemed to also function as stockings, considering how high up they reached—clicked on the ground. A frown was on her face, and she glanced down to her left as she began to speak to her travelling companion…which came up to maybe slightly past her ankle in terms of height.

It was a white...snowman, sort of thing, though most people would call it a dog. Even came complete with a golden drill bit for a nose. The drill bit had five lines through it. Not three, not four, not six, but five.

"None of this town's magic shops had anything good," she complained, "Not a single key…"

The creature next to her continued its pace, shaking in place like it was cold. The girl sighed, turning again, looking to her side, seeing the posters on the wall. She walked over, her companion following her.

"These things are everywhere…" Her frown turned from disappointment to anger, as she looked upon them. One of them appeared to be a goth of sorts, another appeared bored, another looked like some kind of sword-wielding geek, and the other…looked…well, flat-out annoyed. "To think these four came from Fairy Tail..."

She bent forward, her eyes stopping on one of the posters, hand over her mouth, "But that reward…for even one of them…"

"'Wanted for destruction of property…Cody of Fairy Tail…Two hundred thousand Jewels—"

Before she could get a better look at the man, a hand slammed into the poster she was looking at, a sharp, masculine grunt accompanying the action. The poster of "Cody" was then ripped violently from the wall, being crumpled up by the tanned hand. Naturally, the young lady went to follow it, and connected it to a rather upset-looking male, who had a vein showing on his temple.

His brown hair was slicked back, though it had some spikes to it. It was held in place by a blue headband. His skin was, well, tanned, and his hazel eyes were primed with frustration. He wore a green shirt with gray long sleeves, and baggy gray pants. He also had sandals on.

"Can't even get it right the first time…" He mumbled to himself, throwing the crumpled up poster over his shoulder.

Lucy wasn't quite sure what to think of that comment, nor his…attitude. The man, who, for the sake of saving time, we'll call "Headband" until he introduces himself properly, seemed to finally notice her there, and his eyes widened a bit.

"Umm…" She had to say something, since he wasn't, "Hello…"

In response, Headband only made a noise, " 'Yeh'…"

"What?" Lucy asked, not understanding what he was saying. Headband blinked, and realized what happened. His eyes narrowed, and he raised his left arm as though confused.

"Um…I meant…"

Now she got it. It wasn't him speaking some weird language…She lifted her finger, "Oh, 'yeh'. 'Hey' backwards…" A phenomenon only known as a "sweatdrop" began to drop down one side of the back of her head as she lowered her finger, "Why…"

"Sorry…" Headband said, "Just kind of surprised…"

"By what?"

She wasn't sure what she said, but Headband seemed taken aback for some reason. Really taken aback.

"Puuuun…" Plue had decided to greet the boy before her, in his own way. His front paws were pressed against Headband's leg, and that drill nose was soon stabbed into the skin. "Pun."

The teen yelped mildly, jumping up, grabbing on to the afflicted leg.

"Sorry!" Lucy immediately grabbed Plue, holding him. The dog spirit shook, as it usually did, letting out yet another "Puuun…"

"You can't do that…" She said to him, puffing out her cheeks to him.

"Pun…" The white creature covered its eyes with its paws, and vanished in a cloud of yellow dust of sorts.

With a sigh, Lucy apologized again, "Sorry about Plue…"

"No problem…"

As blood spurted from the hole in his leg, Lucy could only say one thing:

"You sure?!"

* * *

A few moments later, the two sat down at the nearest bench. Sure enough, Headband wasn't lying. His wound from Plue seemed to have vanished, and his pants also didn't have a hole drilled into them. It didn't seem that out of the ordinary. They had just met, and…well, for someone who seemed ordinary enough, Headband took being stabbed in the leg surprisingly well.

"So, my name's Lucy…" Lucy introduced herself, "That was my Celestial Spirit, Plue."

Headband opened his mouth, but Lucy ignored him.

"Oh, but I'm sure you don't know what a Celestial Spirit is." Her left fist smacked down into her right palm. "Celestial Spirits are these magical beings from another world."

* * *

_Headband could only listen, keeping his face absolutely blank, as Lucy rambled on. For some reason, the two were now in front of what could have been a sea of stars of sorts, with Plue floating away through them. Headband and Lucy were also...shrunken, and looked sort of like small dolls of themselves._

"_I'm a special kind of mage whose magic can call these spirits with my magic Gate Keys. I've managed to get a pretty good collection too. Plue was my latest spirit that I bought from a magic shop in Hargeon…"_

_Her monologue continued. Headband did not change his facial expression. It would have been very interesting, but for one problem…_

I know…all of this…

* * *

Eventually, Lucy finished talking about her ambitions and self. Everything was back to normal; the two were normal size, and the map of the stars was replaced with the city once more.

"Anyway, I kind of trailed off…so do you live here?" She asked, returning the conversation back to him.

"Oh, no…I'm traveling with some friends at the moment…" Headband responded.

"Friends? Where are they?" Lucy asked.

"I got—" Headband halted, "Er…They got lost."

Lucy stood up, "Well, I'll help you find them."

Headband stood, deciding doing that was a bit more important right now…

"Alright."

* * *

Lucy wasn't quite sure about Headband. He claimed that he was traveling with his friends, but he said they were a bit hard to describe. They had been searching for them for just over a minute when…

"Ah, there's our fine companion!" This was from another male voice, that sounded vaguely…British?

Headband turned, seeming to recognize him, "That didn't take long…"

The man in question was wearing some kind of suit. Also, his hair was blond, and seemed to curl somewhat towards the front. For some reason, he also had a stick or something coming out of his mouth...a sucker, perhaps?

Lucy suddenly felt a presence behind her; a gut feeling. She turned, seeing what looked like a kid in a beanie leaning against the wall just behind her, one foot propped up against the wall. Apparently, he also had bubblegum-evidenced by the pink bubble coming out of his mouth.

"Eh…"

"Yo." Beanie said, the bubble popping, gum snapping back into his mouth. She wasn't sure why, but now she felt intensely uncomfortable. There was some guy in a headband, a guy who...well, looked just a little sleazy in a tuxedo, and a kid in a beanie. Quickly, she made the move to back away, only to bump into yet another person she didn't quite see coming up on her.

This time, it was a monk of sorts; what else could he be with that large, grayish robe covering his body and hiding his face entirely.

"Okay, good, we're all here…" said Headband.

"It appears so…" the blonde observed, "So gents, what shall we do next?"

Lucy heard the impact of feet hitting the ground hard. Little did she know, Beanie was not quite as composed as she thought. Of course, by the time she turned to where she heard the noise, she could see Beanie, back against the wall looking away. She had no idea that Beanie had just been pointing at her, eyes wide as dinner plates. By now, Lucy definitely felt something was amiss. The man with slicked back hair, the kid in the beanie, the monk, the tux…

_I'm surrounded by some kind of weird thugs!_ Lucy thought to herself, backing away. As she did so, the "weird thugs" began to look back to her. _Just...move away slowly...don't make eye contact…_

* * *

Headband and company could only watch the girl back away from them. She lifted her hands, continuing to back away, lifting her hands in the air, paying no attention to where she was going.

"Heh-"

Naturally, her not paying attention lead to consequences; she tripped backwards into the waterway behind her.

"Oh dear, it seems that she's suffered quite the spill…"

"You think so…?" Headband asked, turning to Blonde, only to find he'd pretty much already vanished from where he was standing. Monk was facepalming, and Beanie seemed a little...agitated, from Headband's angle. Had Headband been able to see his face, he might have recommended an exorcist-Beanie's eyes were darting all over the place, the pupils taking turns dilating and undilating one at a time.

"Could I offer you some assistance, miss?" Blonde's voice rang through, and Headband looked back, and felt...annoyance. Blonde had taken his good deed for the day by moving to help the girl that had fallen to the ground. Though he couldn't see the expression on Blonde's face, Lucy had just fallen into the water, in a white outfit…Headband quickly waved this off before he thought about that too much.

"I...uh...thank you?" Lucy stated, as she accepted the hand so graciously offered to her. Blonde pulled her out of the water, back onto dry land.

"You okay there…?" Monk whispered to Beanie.

"'S all good…" Beanie reassured.

"It seems we startled you…" Blonde continued, leading her away from the waterway, "I assure you that we're all quite friendly."

Headband continued to watch the two as they passed. Eventually, the man realized he needed to refocus, and as such, tapped his forehead with his fist.

"Yeah, no need to worry about us…" Headband spoke up, nodding.

"Right," Lucy turned to him, looking from him to the others around her, "I guess I just got a little-"

Beanie was getting agitated...or something, given his foot was tapping on the ground, and he was still half-not looking at Lucy. His foot was tapping on the ground very hard; hard enough to make the ground start to crack.

"Uhhhm...uncomfortable…"

"Yeah…" Headband responded with a sweatdrop of his own, "He...does that sometimes."

"Bit of a mental condition, but nothing to fear…" Blonde continued casually, in his British accent.

Beanie twitched, and seemed to finally pull himself together, turning to Lucy.

"Yo, blondie…" Beanie said, "You gon' get out of 'dose soaked up rags?"

"Excuse me?" Lucy flatly questioned. Beanie could only smack his lips in response, before turning to the other "weird thugs" in the area.

"I gots to go to the restroom boys…" Beanie kindly informed everyone, walking away. A silence ensued among the others. The hat-wearing kid slowly slid to the ground as soon as he turned to the corner, sighing to himself.

"Anyway…" Headband said, his upper face slowly falling into shade...despite the fact there was no way that could happen, "I noticed you were looking at those...wanted posters…"

"Oh…" Lucy's expression changed. "Yeah…"

"Nasty people, aren't they?" Headband continued.

"Temper, temper, there…" Blonde said, in a...warning tone?

"That's an understatement…" Lucy said, frowning.

"Ah yes," Blonde continued, "Causing quite the trouble, those blokes…"

"Indeed…" Monk nodded, though his facial expression was indiscernible.

"Property damage…" The headband-wearing teen continued, "I mean...Yeah, there's something someone shouldn't run from…"

"It's not what they're doing…" Lucy corrected, "But it's what their actions are causing that's upsetting me…"

"Oh?" Asked the suit wearing man, removing the stick from his mouth-sure enough, it looked like the end of a sucker. "Then what has you so upset, madam?"

"That they do all these crimes and dare call themselves mages of Fairy Tail…"

* * *

Around the corner, Beanie lowered his head, listening in on the conversation.

"I take it you're a fan?" Headband continued.

"Of course! It's the greatest guild in all of Fiore!"

"Ah yes...quite the…" Blonde paused, "Eccentric...group they are."

"No kidding…" Headband responded.

"I really just can't believe that a guild like Fairy Tail had members that would...do that…an entire town, completely destroyed, just for fun…"

"...For...fun…?" This was Headband, sounding a bit too close to losing his composure. "Hold on a sec…"

"Yes...They are certainly a rotten bunch…"

* * *

"I heard they managed to confiscate one of their weapons during an attempted capture…" Lucy explained what she knew of the outlaws, "They're probably keeping it in the Magic Council's main base here, that big castle in the center of town…"

Now, the girl realized something was off. Beanie hadn't quite returned yet.

"Hey...where'd your friend go?" she asked. Headband, Blonde, and Monk all seemed very concerned-though, again, she couldn't see under Monk's hood.

"Uh...hang on a sec…"

* * *

Headband had been the one to go look. He followed Beanie's footsteps, feeling nervousness swell up in his heart. Sure enough, when he turned the corner, his friend was nowhere in sight. In his place was a massive crater in the wall.

"Oh...dammit…"

* * *

Beanie had taken off running through the city streets, heading for the town's center, eyes shaded, teeth grit.

* * *

"Hey guys…" Headband slid out from around the corner. Lucy couldn't help but notice he looked...off. Nervous, maybe? "Uh… I guess we should get moving…I-I'm...pretty worried about those criminals and all…"

"Hmm…?" asked Monk. Headband could only give an awkward smile.

"I would have to agree," said Blonde, "Who knows when they'll make an appearance?"

* * *

The beanie-wearing kid continued to run towards the center of town. All the while, he could only think about the information he'd just heard from Lucy, about the attempted capture and the confiscation.

_If word got out to where the sword was taken...No doubt that…_

An explosion rang out in the distance. Smoke rose from where the castle was, and Beanie skidded to a halt, teeth still grit tightly.

_That's exactly where they'll head..._

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Lucy, Headband, and Beanie-**

Lucy:"Hey! Everyones favorite Lucy here! Boy that first chapter was exciting."

Headband:"Indeed…"

_The boy had dark brown hair-almost black, greenish-blue eyes, a dark purple vest over a white short-sleeve shirt, blue jeans, and black shoes. His teeth were insanely crooked; almost making you wonder if he could eat through them,_

Beanie:"Heck yah…"

Lucy:"Sorry about Plue…"

_Beanie began to weave about, avoiding the attacks, tanking one with crossed arms after a while. Behind him, Cody moved into position._

Headband:"It's alright, I should be fine…"

*Beanie closes in on the camera, eyes wide*

Beanie:"If Lucy has Plue here then that means we're after Hargeon where she got him! Whatever happened to Natsu and Happy? Did Lucy beat up those jerks that tried to kidnap her by herself?"

_Suddenly, the knight turned, hearing two screams just outside his door. A moment later, that was sliced in two, Ian walking through the open door easily._

Lucy:"Hey, what are you doing over there?"

Beanie:"YO!"

_***~*The End*~***_

* * *

_**Closing author's note: So this is the revised version of Collision Course, which some of you may have noticed I removed a day or two after putting it up. This one is vastly different from the first one. So with that in mind, let's go ahead and begin by saying: treat all these after-chapter specials as author's notes. **_


	2. The Culprits!

**Chapter 2: The Culprits…!**

* * *

At the center of Olbesk, the Magic Council's headquarters stood tall and imposing, a castle of marble. In the courtyard, numerous knights and staff-wielding mages, the Rune Knights, were gathered around a smoking crater. Four figures began to step forth from the smoke, one quickly making himself known.

"Heh, is that the best you Magic Council dweebs can do?" asked one, obviously the leader, adjusting his rounded glasses, cackling through his bucked teeth.

**~*"Fairy Tail Miscreant": Ian*~**

"If it is," A second man walked out, skin so pale he could pass for albino, and clothes so stereotypically goth that even gothic people would be offended to be associated with him, "You're better off just lying down and accepting death."

**~*"Fairy Tail Miscreant": James*~**

"I've got the numbers all figured out…" The boy had dark brown hair-almost black, greenish-blue eyes, a dark purple vest over a white short-sleeve shirt, blue jeans, and black shoes. His teeth were insanely crooked; almost making you wonder if he could eat through them, "You lose."

**~*"Fairy Tail Miscreant": Cody*~**

"Don't see why we need such noise or flair for that matter…" The last of the four stepped forward, with insanely short red hair-almost like a buzzcut. His clothes were boring-dark gray.

**~*"Fairy Tail Miscreant": Larry*~**

Two knights rushed the group. Ian smirked, grabbing at the swords on his back, stepping forward to meet the knights' charge. The swords were pulled forth from the sheath, slashing upwards, slicing the knights as soon as they came close. The poor knights fell to the ground, defeated by the attack.

"Sooooo _**LAME!**_" Ian shouted.

"Divide…" Cody swiped the middle three fingers on his left hand, creating large, dark green slash marks...which sort of looked like a dividing symbol...soared through the air, blowing up a handful more of the Rune Knights as they moved in to provide their comrades with backup. "To conquer…"

Four of the royal mages lowered their staffs, firing orange flames out from them. The gothic miscreant inhaled, quickly exhaling a cloud of black smoke, creating a dense wall that blocked the flames.

"Huh...hope this doesn't take too long," Larry observed in an emotionally dead tone, a small Magic Seal appearing in front of him, as it changed into a small portal of sorts. He jammed his arm into the portal, his arm appearing next to a mage and punching into him.

"I'm just gonna cut through these lame wads and get right to that sword!" Ian declared, bringing his swords to one side. His glasses glared as the light hit them, a sinister grin on his face.

Out of nowhere, a foot caved his face in, breaking one of the lenses to his glasses. Ian was lifted off his feet, being sent several yards back.

His attacker-Beanie, of all people, landing on the ground, striking a cool pose.

"Yo…" Beanie quipped, looking over the person he just attacked.

"The hyack mayn…!" Ian cried out, his voice distorted from his askew nose.

Beanie took a nice, long look at Ian; the miscreant in question rose to his feet, fixing his nose. Beanie's eye twitched, annoyance breaking through his composure.

"Who're you…" The beanie-wearing kid asked, a flat tone in his voice.

"What kinda idiot are you?" The dual-blade-wielding teen asked, "I'm Ian from Fairy Tail!"

"Oh…" Beanie responded, scratching at the inside of his ear.

"Yeah, so why don't yah-" Ian tried to tell Beanie to scram, but Beanie wasn't having it, closing the distance surprisingly fast for a civilian, slamming his fist into the nerdy-looking man's face, sending him flying back again.

"Sorry, I don't think you heard me?" Beanie's street accent was all but gone now, and his eyes were wide-however his hat hid the otherwise angry-looking eyebrows. "Who. Are. You?"

"Ah, dang! We got someone who's gettin' in our way!" Cody observed.

"We'll just have to crush him into the dirt like all the others…" James stated, clenching his fists.

Larry sighed, annoyed with the whole ordeal, "Well crap. This all makes things more interesting...I hate interesting…"

Ian got to his feet, angered, "I'll slice this lame dweeb to pieces!"

"Go on…" Beanie stood straight up, "Try it…"

James was the first to act, expelling a puff of black smoke from his mouth. It turned into the shape of a fist, flying at Beanie; Beanie sidestepped easily, rushing forward. Ian lunged in turn, swinging his sword. Beanie cocked his fist back, ready for another punch-

Something caught his leg, knocking him off balance. Despite this, Beanie dodged the sword, cleanly, turning his head back. He saw a hand that had closed around his ankle. The hand in question slipped back through the portal.

Beanie's head circled back around, spotting Ian thrusting both of his blades down, trying to stab him, but Beanie rolled easily to the side, avoiding that attack.

James decided to kick things up a notch, moving to Beanie's side and breathing a horde of smoke missiles at Beanie.

Beanie began to weave about, avoiding the attacks, tanking one with crossed arms after a while. Behind him, Cody moved into position.

"Multiply…"

Cody began to throw dark green asterisks, X's, and multiplication symbols at Beanie. Beanie began to dodge, but he quickly realized other people were directly behind him.

He couldn't let them get hurt…

Beanie quickly stepped back, bringing his hand forward. The multiplication attacks impacted, followed closely by more missiles, which caused enough of an explosion to displace the marble beneath his feet and kick up a shitload of smoke.

"He took their attack!" One of the knights observed.

"Is he okay!?" One of the mages questioned.

The smoke eventually cleared. Beanie was lying facedown, clothes singed from the attack.

"And stay down!" Cody yelled, soon as he saw the sight.

"That ought to put you in your place, loser!" Ian taunted.

"A bit too...exciting…" Larry sighed, sounding dully annoyed.

"An untimely death, but it would have happened eventually…" James eulogized.

"So what you say we get back to where we left off, Ian…?" Cody asked, looking over to his teammate, a glowing plus sign beginning to hover over his hand.

"I don't want to bother with these lame soldiers anymore…" Ian responded, "Let's get in that castle and get what's mine!"

The team of criminals began to head towards the castle. The Rune Knights were frozen in place, utterly stunned at the display of power from the four.

"We can't do anything…" A different knight stated, sweating, yet remaining standing.

"Against them…" A different mage stated, raising his staff. "They're...mages of such a powerful guild…"

The kid in the beanie remained utterly motionless on the ground. The miscreants continued to go into the castle unopposed.

* * *

_***~*"And then…"*~***_

* * *

Close by, a certain group of people were running towards the commotion-Lucy, Headband, Monk, and Blonde.

"All the commotion was definitely coming from the castle!" Lucy called out.

Headband hung his head, his upper face seemingly hidden by shadows, "Just hope he isn't there caught in it!"

As they drew closer, they could see the knights and mages of the Magic Council in turmoil. They clearly didn't know what to do about this situation.

The monk didn't seem so convinced of things.

"The young chap can fend for himself, he shall be fine…" Despite the light tone to his voice, the tux-wearing "bloke" had no semblance of seriousness on his face.

The group eventually reached the Rune Knights' situation, with Lucy being the one to break the ice.

"What happened here?" Lucy asked of one of the knights.

"What?" asked one of the knights as he turned to her, "Civilians shouldn't get too close…"

"I'm a mage, I can help!" The confidence Lucy had at first quickly vanished, "I-I think…"

"A mage?" The knight questioned, "Well, those swines from Fairy Tail were here...and…well, they took down some super tough gangster, one in a beanie…"

"That's-!" Lucy started. Headband, Monk, and Blonde didn't seem too concerned with this news, but why…?

"Did you know him? He's…" The knight motioned to a crater...that was empty. When he turned, so did everyone else. The crowd of mages stared in confusion.

"Where did the body go!?" A mage called out in confusion.

"Did anyone even check his pulse?" A second knight questioned the crowd.

A silence followed, a silence so awkward it was deemed illegal by the Magic Council to have a silence that awkward ever again.

"I didn't want to touch it…" The second knight confessed, his voice growing slightly high-pitched, "I just went with what the goth one said…"

"The ones responsible for this," Blonde gestured to the carnage around him, "They are…?"

"What?" The first knight turned to the man in question, "Why are you talking like that...but yeah…"

"They went into the castle," said the mage who questioned where Beanie's body went, "But don't even think about getting near there. We're waiting on reinforcements…"

Monk didn't seem to care; hell, while the Rune Knights were busy with everyone else, he was already making his way to the castle doors.

"Oh that's quite alright…" Blonde said, walking over to the castle. "That will not be needed…"

"What he said," announced Headband, his voice sounding confident, following Blonde's lead. Lucy followed them, entirely unsure.

"Eh?!"

_**Entirely**_ unsure of their sanity, that is.

* * *

Within the castle walls, in an office, a mature-looking knight stood over a table. He looked over a sword, very large in size, probably about half the height of the average person and about as thick as the torso of the average male. It was a silver sword, with the logo of Fairy Tail blazoned on one side in a slightly lighter color.

"To think…" The knight observed, "It took ten of our soldiers half a day to carry this here…"

Looking over the sword more, his eye twitched, "And yet, the table supports it perfectly…blasted magic…"

Suddenly, the knight turned, hearing two screams just outside his door. A moment later, that was sliced in two, Ian walking through the open door easily.

"Ah, finally made it to the only decent thing in this crap town…" Ian stated, walking into the room, swords at the ready, "My prize…"

The knight drew his blade, charging, "I won't allow you to get your hands on this sword again!"

As the knight got within range, Ian sidestepped casually, spinning with both of his blades out. The knight stood no chance, cut down with that one maneuver. Ian sheathed his swords immediately afterward, adjusting his glasses with his middle finger.

This done, he turned to the table, and walked towards it.

"Finally, the real deal is finally mine!"

Ian grabbed the sword, and attempted to lift it. But no matter how much elbow grease he applied, the blade would not budge.

"The hell kind of crap is this!?" Ian shouted, in confusion.

"Did you really think…"

Ian turned, seeing Beanie kneeling at the window sill. His clothes were burnt, and a second layer of clothing underneath was revealed slightly.

"That the Ten Commandments would find you worthy enough to wield it?!"

* * *

Elsewhere in the castle, a certain gothic bastard was choking chefs with smoke in the kitchen. Why? Because he felt like being an asshole today. More of one than usual.

"How's it feel to be the ones cooked in smoke?!" James called out, continuing his torture of the chefs.

"That doesn't even -cough- make sense!" A chef choked out.

"Doesn't have to, just die!"

Just then, a door exploded nearby. James turned his head, loosening the smoke grip he had on the chefs.

"Huh?" He questioned, seeing the tux-wearing blonde at what was once a doorway.

"Excuse me, sir," Blonde asked, "May I have a word with you?"

Despite the warm smile on his face, one could easily tell he was very pissed off…

* * *

Elsewhere in the castle, where the Magic Council in Olbesk did their accounting…

"All..._**WRONG!**_"

One of the accountants fell back scared; Cody's fury was on full display. He was scribbling furiously at the parchments, checking the Magic Council's...math?

"You did this all wrong!" he screamed, "You're supposed to carry the one, you idiots! This is an abomination!"

Cody swung his hands about, math signs flying everywhere, exploding on impact, causing damage.

"A disgrace! An absolute crapfest of work! Do you have anyone to double-check your stuff?! Good God, no wonder we're-"

A hand poked Cody in the shoulder, interrupting his little bitch fit. He turned, annoyed.

Headband met his eyes, his face twisted into one of the most hilarious expressions of anger one could expect to find on a human being. Before Cody could react, he was sucker-punched, sending him flying backwards, flat on his back.

Headband turned to the desk, blinking.

"Wow, this is wrong…"

Headband proceeded to finish Cody's work, all calmness.

"Carry the two, add fifty percent...deduct this, calculate that, and...Kay."

Now that he was done with that diversion, Headband carried on with being angry.

"Now…" Headband began to walk slowly to a stunned Cody, who seemed shocked that a short-looking teen with an unfitting hairstyle could do that to him…

* * *

In yet another spot in the castle, women were running out of a bath room, squealing in fear and disgust. Why? Larry was standing just outside the door, hands in the portal. Inside the bathroom, one of the tubs had his hands coming out of the portal in the bathtub.

Larry sighed, "Nothing...special…"

Just then, Monk appeared, walking casually to where Larry was standing.

"Oh, look at that…" Larry said, "Aren't you quite boring…?"

A brief pause.

"Nice…" Larry flatly said, sounding no more excited than he usually got.

* * *

Within the halls of the castle, Lucy ran about. She really wished she had actually followed them inside instead of questioning them at first. Now, she only had one question on her mind…

"Where...did everyone go…?"

She slid to a halt, unknowing that the four "weird thugs" were facing off against the four miscreants, in their locations.

Lucy frowned, not knowing where to go. She had four people to keep track of, and she wasn't sure who she'd find first, or what exactly she could do. Eventually, she took off running through one of the halls, confused and concerned.

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Blonde and Monk-**

_Back in the office, Beanie and Ian were continuing their battle, the former dodging the latter's sword strikes._

Blonde:"It would appear we are finally entering a scuffle? Quite exciting isn't it old chap?"

Monk:"..."

_The clothes Headband was wearing seemed to change before her very eyes: his pants changed to a pair of blue jeans, his sandals changed to red running shoes. His shirt changed to an orange, sleeveless one, and as Headband swiped his arm back, Lucy saw it._

Blonde:"I feel like i'd heard of that 'Ten Commandments' before. What say you?"

Monk:"..."

Blonde:"Well...this conversation is rather dull…perhaps more intelligence shall be gathered next chapter."

_However, before he could get there, a glint entered his vision, and he lifted his swords to block a sword swing from Ivan-however, this did nothing for him, and Ian was still sent sliding back._

Monk:"..."

Blonde:"Tata fair readers!"

_***~*The End*~***_

* * *

**_So if it wasn't obvious, this is meant to be similar to a "love letter" to the manga/anime, from the writing structure down to the sections directly above. Law of Conservation of Detail is in full effect with this story, I'm afraid. Anyway, please drop a review if you liked what you saw so far or have any questions. Or even if you disliked. Explain why. It could help us. Just be sure to not be too caustic._**


	3. Team Souzou

**Chapter 3: Team Souzou**

* * *

Lucy continued to run through the castle halls, completely confused. She still hadn't seen any sign of the four strangers she'd run into today, but she could hear the sounds of violence beginning to erupt within the castle.

"I can't believe they just ran in like that," Lucy said to herself, "They have no idea who they're dealing with…Fairy Tail mages-"

Just then, the wall exploded a ways up from her, smoke spilling out into the hallway. She drew closer, seeing one of the miscreants-Cody-sliding out into the hallway on his back.

"Eh!?" The only response Lucy could manage in the face of this. Well, that, and the fact Headband was casually walking out of the hole in the wall, cracking his knuckles menacingly…

* * *

Back in the office, Beanie and Ian were continuing their battle, the former dodging the latter's sword strikes. The geeky criminal could only growl in frustration as the beanie-wearing kid could hardly stay still...you know, like you probably would if some crazy bastard was trying to chop you into hamburger.

"God, you're such a lame fighter," Ian called out, "Stop. Dodging!"

"Are you really a swordsman?" Beanie questioned flatly, pulling off a roundhouse kick, sending Ian back for the third time that day. "Jeez…"

* * *

Elsewhere in the castle, Larry was lazily running down a hall. Why? Monk was following him, at an unusually quick pace for a person wearing a cloak.

"Maybe you should stop…" Monk admonished flatly. Surprisingly, Larry took his advice, and slowed to a stop.

"Hey now, don't get like that on me…" Larry said, about as emotionlessly as a washing machine.

"Like what, exactly…" The cloaked person questioned, deadpan.

"I said it before...and I hate having to repeat myself…" The redhead said, still emotionally dead, "I...hate...interesting…"

Larry threw his hand back, into a portal that opened up. Monk stood there, obviously confused.

"How was I-" Monk cut himself, as Larry's fist came in, very close to his head. Monk dodged, the punch just missing his head, clipping his hood.

"At point blank…" Larry dryly commented.

* * *

Back in the kitchen, the chefs were being allowed to go free; James' full attention was now on the tuxedo-wearing blonde, who was still very chipper for someone so pissed off. Two walls were already destroyed in the kitchen, the floor cracked. James was sweating, not expecting such power to go up against him today.

"And now that I have your attention…" Surprisingly, Blonde's British accent had completely dropped. The man cracked his knuckles, "I'm going to kick your ass!"

The knight couldn't believe what he was seeing. Here was a gangster, outdoing every member of the Rune Knights' collective effort to bring Ian in. Ian-a member of Fairy Tail-was not able to land a single slice on this kid, and it was clear he was doing his absolute best.

"Just...who is this…?" He asked himself, watching as Beanie kneed Ian away casually, "He's no ordinary person…"

* * *

"You did this?!"

Lucy was utterly in disbelief. On one end of a hole in the wall, was a heinous criminal who just so happened to be a member of Fairy Tail, and on the other, a civilian who looked pretty ordinary.

"To a member of Fairy Tail…"

Cody stood up, "This...doesn't add up…I'm Cody, of Fairy T-"

"Don't make me laugh!" Headband snapped, a vein suddenly very visible on his forehead, his right hand reaching up for his bandanna and throwing it away. "You're no member of Fairy Tail…"

Lucy blinked as she saw Headband seem to change before her very eyes. A wireframe, or something, green in color, appeared over Headband's body, or rather, his clothes. His hair had apparently been held in that place by the headband-it fell over his forehead, assuming a slightly spiked...bedhead style of sorts.

The clothes Headband was wearing seemed to change before her very eyes: his pants changed to a pair of blue jeans, his sandals changed to red running shoes. His shirt changed to an orange, sleeveless one, and as Headband swiped his arm back, Lucy saw it.

A green stamp...but it wasn't any old guild mark…

"Believe me, I've never seen you around…and...and…"

The teen began to stomp his feet on the ground furiously.

"_**There is no 'D' in 'Corey'!**_"

**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: The Lexicon-Corey Armstrong~*~**

* * *

"Unggghhh!" Larry was showing some emotion-mild annoyance. "Why can't you just let me hit you...it would save for some flashy attacks…"

The redhead threw his leg through yet another portal. Monk dodged-or at least, the person in his cloak did. The cloak hung off Larry's leg. He looked exceptionally annoyed now. Well, compared to his average emotionally dead self, anyway.

A teen suddenly popped up behind him, slightly spiked hair of silver, eyes red, very tanned skin. He casually adjusted his messed-up hair. Underneath the cloak, he wore a blue-gray longcoat with a dark purple shirt underneath. His belt and pants were the same dark red color. His shoes were the same color as his longcoat. On his right hand, was a gauntlet, black, but plated with gold and silver.

Larry was surprised, and quickly moved to punch the now cloakless Monk, but found his punch blocked by the gauntlet hand of his opponent.

"Well…?" Monk asked, "I let you hit me…"

Larry could barely show any emotion to this. He didn't have any words for him.

"Alright then…" Monk then proceeded to pull Larry in, kneeing him in the gut and letting him fall down in pain, holding his stomach and coughing. Monk took a couple of steps back, allowing the redhead to recover.

"W...what…?" Larry was obviously more inconvenienced than his expression let on. "Who're you…?!"

"Oh, no one special...I'm just Leo...Fairy Tail's All Fist!"

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: The All Fist-Leo Sacrier~*~**_

* * *

The floor exploded in the kitchen as Blonde and James continued their epic struggle, sending them to the next floor down.

"Impressive," commented the goth, "But you shall die, just like all the others…" He followed this up with exhaling more smoke fists.

Blonde reacted by-rather impressively-jumping off the debris to dodge the attacks. However, he couldn't avoid all the smoke fists, taking one. James landed on his feet, but Blonde hit the ground back first and didn't get up straight away.

James looked down to the tux-wearing man, grinning. "All that and it only took one hit…such a shame…"

Just then, James almost jumped out of his skin. Why? Because Blonde actually got back on his feet and James hadn't turned his back.

"I landed on my back...How did you think I was done?" Blonde asked, cracking his neck, "Now, let's try that again, shall we?"

James didn't answer, breathing more smoke missiles at the suit-wearing man, who began to walk forward, casually dodging some of them. One seemed like it was perfectly on-target, but, abruptly, Blonde faded away, leaving behind...a blonde wig?!

"W-what?" James asked.

"Is this all you can do?"

The goth turned, seeing his now not-blonde opponent facing him.

"Don't get so cocky!" James took a step back, "You'll fall, just like everyone else who dares face Fairy-"

Just then, James' faced was caved in, courtesy of Not-Blonde's fist. "Don't you dare say that name!"

James hit the wall, going through it easily enough. As he recovered, he watched as Not-Blonde stood up, and gave the upper part of his tux a hard tug, tearing it away. On his now-visible left arm, was a black guild stamp-the mark of Fairy Tail. Underneath the suit: a black shortsleeve shirt with a green section through the middle of it.

"You're not worthy…"

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: The Khalkharoth-John~*~**_

* * *

Had Ian landed a single slice since we last left him and Beanie? No, Beanie was still dodging sword slashes left and right from Ian, who was growing more and more agitated by the second.

"I'll cut you into little lame pieces!" Ian screamed, "So! Stop! Dodging!"

Suddenly, his hands were halted mid-slice: Beanie had successfully caught him by the wrists.

"Jeez...that took longer than I imagined…"

Beanie's clothes-except Beanie's beanie-fell away, sliced apart cleanly, with no injuries to Beanie himself. His stereotypical gangster clothes fell away, revealing a red short-sleeve jacket underneath. Underneath that was a white shirt with a purple design on it. His pants were still a navy blue color, and his shoes were gray.

With his real outfit revealed, Beanie decided to spin around, throwing Ian into the nearest wall. At this, the matured knight came to a conclusion.

"Wait...his strength…"

"Oh wait…" Beanie said, turning to him, "I recognize you…"

"You're…"

"You were part of that brigade that attacked me...or at least one of the four…" He rubbed the back of his head, "For the record, I had just finished a job...don't get too proud you disarmed me…"

"Hold on…" Ian grunted, moving away from the wall.

"The member of Fairy Tail…" The knight continued, "Who took four brigades to stop…the true wielder of the Ten Commandments…"

Beanie cast aside...the beanie, revealing a head of brown hair, as he walked towards the table.

"The real deal...not good…" Ian groaned.

"Beanie" proceeded to rough up the front of his hair, pulling out a pair of glasses, turned away from the others. He put his hand to the hilt of the large sword on the table, lifting it as though it weighed little.

"Fairy Tail's Sword Saint of the Shifting Blade…"

The "Sword Saint" turned, a lens on his glasses glinted, facing down Ian, who looked genuinely uncomfortable.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: The Sword Saint-Ivan Joestar~*~**_

* * *

"I can't…" Ian strained, "This isn't…" Quickly, he turned tail, making for the door. However, before he could get there, a glint entered his vision, and he lifted his swords to block a sword swing from Ivan-however, this did nothing for him, and Ian was still sent sliding back.

"So…" Ivan started, "Since I think it's clear you blamed the wrong people…"

The knight was star-struck to see the Sword Saint on his knees, bowing repeatedly.

"Please, don't charge us for damages!"

* * *

"How about I add to your pain!?" Cody shouted, tossing dark green addition signs. Corey, meanwhile, began to move about, seemingly casually, dodging the exploding math signs. All the while, he seemed to be thinking.

"How about I...I…" Was he really thinking of a snappy retort in the middle of battle? "I teach you an algorithm for running home, crying to mommy!"

Corey rushed past Cody, a wireframe in the shape of a hammer appearing-it took its true form soon enough, and the former grabbed it, "I have a method right here…"

Corey swung his hammer at Cody, who lifted his hand with grit teeth. A green subtraction sign appeared in front of him, spinning as it shielded him from the impact-but it shattered.

Corey paused, closing his eyes, clenching his fist, "Script Space…"

Lucy watched, confused as to what he was doing, as a large, light green Magic Seal erupted beneath Corey's feet, and extended outward several yards, before it took the form of...a bubble?

"On…"

Lucy would have asked exactly what Corey was doing, but she noticed that debris was floating around-several large chunks of what used to be a wall, in fact.

"Better watch out…" Corey quipped, "You're in my Zone now…"

The debris soared past her, past Corey, and at Cody, who countered the debris with a multiplication sign, causing an explosion to once again erupt...

* * *

Multiple portals appeared within the room, Larry punching into them. Leo didn't seem too phased by the display of magic, casually dodging each punch, moving in closer to Larry.

"Why…" Larry began, but Leo suddenly warped in front of him, throwing a kick out. Larry stumbled to the side, his arm getting caught in his own portal. Thankfully, Leo was a handyman-he grabbed Larry by the arm, pulling him out and slamming him into the nearest wall, and throwing him into the around.

Leo's gauntlet hand curled into a fist as he began to punch at Larry again. Larry opened a portal to defend himself, causing Leo's fist to go into it and pop out next to Leo's head. However, Leo halted, preventing him from punching himself, retracting his arm and dodging a kick attack from Larry.

The two went on, Larry throwing more close-range attacks, Leo casually parrying each strike. Eventually, Leo once more caught Larry's punch, this time with his bare hand.

"Take this!"

Gauntlet fist, meet Larry's face. Larry, meet the other side of the wall behind you.

* * *

James could hardly believe the power he was up against now, removing himself from underneath rubble, coughing up smoke unintentionally as he did so.

John walked through the hole, more or less stretching his arm, "Looks like I held back too much on that punch…"

James continued to cough, getting back to his feet, "Y-you better believe it…"

The Fairy Tail mage began to advance on the goth, as casual as ever, "Oh well, this'll be over soon…"

"I couldn't agree more!" James took a deep breath, an insane look on his face. John remained absolutely stationary. James expelled a large cloud of black smoke, surrounding John entirely.

"Smoke Coffin!"

The smoke began to compress around John, James yelling out what he wanted John to do in there, "Suffocate!"

The smoke coffin continued to cave in, James eventually grinning through heavy breaths, "See? Like I said… just like all the others."

Believing he'd won, James turned, walking away.

"And they mistook you for me?"

James' eyes widened, and he turned to the coffin. A black Magic Seal began to open up under it. The coffin suddenly began to expand, exploding, sending black smoke in all directions.

"I'm a little insulted…" John said, now cloaked in a black aura. Shadows seemed to crawl toward him, shifting towards his hand, beginning to morph into the shape of a sword…

* * *

Ian was absolutely terrified, and Ivan could see it. Ian was using both of his blades, blocking Ivan's casual, one-handed sword strikes with them.

"You can't even handle the Ten Commandments first form...Eisenmeteor…" Ivan calmly mocked.

"Look man, you got your sword back!" Ian blocked a strike, "Isn't that-" Another strike blocked, "Enough!?"

Ivan's eye twitched, betraying his previously composed look. In a flash, Ian found himself disarmed.

"Enough? Do you understand what you've done?"

* * *

Lucy watched, utterly amazed at the display of power she was seeing. Another light green Magic Seal appeared under Corey's feet, and the bubble expanded in size.

"You actually had someone believing that someone from Fairy Tail would do something like that…" His tone was angry.

Lucy had heard of the Fairy Tail members' passion before, but seeing it firsthand…

* * *

James was in a pinch, firing more smoke missiles at John. He cut them down easily, the missiles turning into regular smoke.

"You struck down innocent people…" John snarled.

* * *

Leo whipped a cartridge out of his pocket, charging Larry as he placed it in his gauntlet.

"In the name of Fairy Tail…"

* * *

"Our guild is our pride," Ivan continued, Eisenmeteor bursting into light.

* * *

"Our home…" Corey stated, green, transparent squares forming and shrinking over his right fist, having transferred his hammer to his left hand.

* * *

John lifted his shadow blade, the room seeming to get darker.

"Our family…"

* * *

"Our soul…"

Leo's gauntlet shifted, changing form slightly, erupting into purple flames.

* * *

"So don't you ever!"

Ivan's blade had shifted form-it was not the same large silver sword, but rather slightly narrower, orange in color, and the hilt had changed slightly as well. He lunged, eyes wide.

"Step-"

* * *

Corey rushed Cody completely, fist raised, his fist cloaked in green light.

"On the-"

* * *

John rushed James, darkness moving with him.

"The name-"

* * *

From Leo's gauntlet, purple flames surged up, and he brought his hand forward.

"Name of-"

* * *

At the same time, in four different locations, the four teammates cried out:

"FAIRY TAIL!"

Ivan spun, hitting Ian with his sword multiple times. The sword didn't cut into him, however, but rather, sent him flying backward in a tornado of explosions, through the wall behind him, and the wall after that.

Corey's fist slammed into Cody's stomach. For a second, nothing happened as Cody's face pulled into a hilarious expression of pain. Suddenly, Cody was sent flying backwards, off of Corey's fist, through several walls.

John slashed the sword of shadows, creating shadow projectiles which hit James directly, sending him through the walls that were behind him.

Leo shot a beam of purple flames from his gauntlet, speeding at Larry, who did not dodge in time. Larry hit the wall again, and went through it as the flames engulfed him.

In a surprising coincidence, all four of the impostors were knocked into the same large room, colliding with each other hard enough to cause a small impact crater in the floor of that room.

* * *

Lucy watched, absolutely awestruck at the property damage she witnessed, but not because of the fact it was the Magic Council's castle that had just gotten ripped apart. Corey walked through the hole in the wall, his back to her.

"That was...That's...the power...of a real Fairy Tail mage…"

She followed him as he entered the room, but didn't enter herself. She saw three others enter the room. She had a funny feeling all of the strangers she'd met were the same way...people framed for actions of the fakers.

Ivan's sword had reverted to Eisenmeteor once more, John buttoning his shirt. Leo removed the cartridge from his gauntlet, looking at it for a moment before pocketing it.

Corey, meanwhile, shrunk the bubble down until it vanished into him with a small green glow.

Lucy said nothing, merely looking at everyone.

"So everyone did okay?" Ivan asked of the group.

"Yeah, no problem…" John responded, cracking his neck.

"Yep…" Corey said. Leo merely nodded.

"Amazing…" Lucy commented, unable to think of any other words to describe what she had seen.

The mature knight from before followed the carnage to the large room, stumbling out from behind Ivan.

"So...this is the strength of the Fairy Tail Guild's up and coming stars…"

"The true...Team Souzou…"

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Team Souzou and Lucy-**

Lucy:"Woah! Those guys were actually fakes?! How did such a well known group like Team Souzou get confused with those odd characters anyway…"

*Four others are talking a ways away

_There was a cathedral towards the center of the town, and at the other end was another large building-the guild hall of Fairy Tail._

Ivan:"Did you see that? My fight was amazing…"

John:"Well, you did pretty good… to bad the reader was so focused on mine...they probably couldn't even concentrate on the others going on…"

Corey:"I'm sure the readers were still ready to rip your tongue off after that horrible fake british accent…"

John:"You shut your mouth about my accent! Damn wanker!"

_Mirajane stepped in at this point, walking Elfman away, allowing the five to enter. Lucy was a little...concerned, to say the least. Five seconds in and one member was already attacking another._

Corey:"We're not in disguise anymore, STOP!"

Leo:"Guys, calm down...we need to focus…"

_Both stepped back from one another, magic seals appearing under them. Just then, Elfman intervened by grabbing each of them and slamming their heads together._

John:"...right…"

Corey:"Whatever…"

Leo:"Good….now clearly my fight was the best. Could we get a replay?"

Ivan:"Don't you dare! We don't have much time, replay mine quick!"

_Lucy did what any rational person would do in this situation: hide underneath the nearest table. _

*Lucy takes over camera

Lucy:"Looks like things are about to get rough...why not leave a review and say who you thought was coolest? Next chapter the Souzous real personalities are gonna come to life, don't miss it!"

Ivan:"Explosion!"

Corey:"Script Space On!"

_John had a magic seal forming under his feet, as shadows began to surround him,_

Lucy:"Just what are these magics…"

_***~*The End*~***_


	4. Fairy Tail

**Chapter 4: Fairy Tail**

* * *

Magnolia Town, also in the kingdom of Fiore. It was a large town, on one end, a port outlooking towards a vast waterway, with smaller waterways interleaved throughout the town. There was a cathedral towards the center of the town, and at the other end was another large building-the guild hall of Fairy Tail.

And our group's next destination…

* * *

"I can't believe you're taking me to Fairy Tail!" Lucy chirped, clapping her hands together.

The team had brought her back along with them on their trek back to their hometown.

"Well, we had to get you out of there…" Ivan casually stated, images of the immediate aftermath of the battle running through his mind.

* * *

_The matured knight was rather angry-looking. Which, considering the damage that had been done to the castle during the fights, hadn't been all that surprising._

"_I'll give you all…" He spoke through gritted teeth, "Thirty seconds...to get out of my jurisdiction…"_

"_I thought we agreed all charges could be dropped?!" Ivan questioned in confusion._

"_That didn't count the castle!" The knight countered, shouting._

"_Ah, give us a break," John responded, trying to appeal the team's case, "Do you know how long we spent in hiding?!"_

"_...Twenty five seconds…"_

_That got Team Souzou scattering, running for the nearest exit from Olbesk. Lucy only stood there in confusion, looking around, wondering what she should do. _

_Ivan, meanwhile, circled back around, throwing her over his shoulder before quickly running off again._

* * *

Ivan's arms were folded, his glasses glared, as the memory ended. Lucy, meanwhile, was far more distracted with something up ahead-Corey and John. Corey seemed to be slouching over slightly, while John walked parallel to him, laughing it off. As Headband and Blonde, they seemed to get along, but now…

"They've been...different...on the way over…" Lucy said, unable to put her finger on it.

"You saw them in disguise before…" Ivan responded flatly, "But you should know, they're actually…"

On cue, Corey swung out his right fist, full-force-Lucy didn't quite see if he did the glowing fist thing again-knocking John down the nearest alleyway. Corey continued to face ahead, walking as though he hadn't just punched anyone.

Lucy could only look at the spectacle with a sweatdrop. Behind her, Leo and Ivan nodded, as though this happened everyday.

* * *

"It's actually the Guild Hall!" Lucy cheered, as they reached the building in question. None of the members of Fairy Tail bothered to point out how obvious this was. Instead, Ivan moved ahead of the group, towards the entrance.

"Right…" Ivan said, "Welcome to…"

He pushed open the doors, turning towards the entrance.

"Fairy-"

Ivan halted, his eyes wide. He whipped out that sword of his, swinging his sword down and blocked a punch from a very tall man with silver hair.

"Eh?!" The only thing that could come to Lucy's mind.

"You dared to show your face back here!?" the man roared. At this point, a smaller woman slid in from behind him, same hair color.

"Brother...we already explained this…" she said, her tone light despite her...brother's…angry tone.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Employee: Mirajane Strauss~*~**_

"I won't believe it unless it comes from them!" shouted the man as Ivan finally began to push his fist back.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: Elfman Strauss~*~**_

"Then give me time to explain!" Ivan responded.

"So you admit you did it!?" Another punch from Elfman. Ivan opted to dodge, his composure breaking into annoyance.

"No!"

Mirajane stepped in at this point, walking Elfman away, allowing the five to enter. Lucy was a little...concerned, to say the least. Five seconds in and one member was already attacking another.

"Well that was…" Lucy looked around. Her eyes went wide, realizing she was actually within the doors now.

"Look, the Souzous are back!" A mage nearby called out.

"The council kept sending guys looking for you…" A second male said.

"They really made it hard to concentrate…" a short female said, sitting down, looking at a book.

_**~*~Team Shadow Gear: Droy, Jet, and Levy~*~**_

"Ah, Leo!" A man called out to him.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: Macao Conbolt~*~**_

Macao practically slid up to Leo's side, putting one arm around him, "So, you use my magic while you were out?"

Just then, another man slid in, removing the limb from Leo's shoulders as though it offended him that it was there.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: Wakaba Mine~*~**_

"You kidding?" Wakaba asked, "He must have used mine!"

As an argument ensued, Leo backed off, not really wanting to get more involved in it than he obviously already was…

It was then, another man walked up with a girl in each arm. He had glasses on too.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Playboy Mage: Loke~*~**_

"So, you brought back a cute girl…" Loke stated to Ivan, adjusting his glasses.

Ivan adjusted his glasses, "You might say that…"

As the two took turns adjusting their glared glasses repeatedly, John could only look.

"It's uncanny…" he remarked.

"It's not like this is the first time we've seen this happen…" Corey responded flatly.

"Oh, is Erza here?" Ivan asked, adjusting his glasses one final time.

"You just missed her." Loke replied.

"Thank god…" Ivan sighed, slouching in relief.

"The Erza?" Lucy cut in, "Oh, I'd love to meet her!"

"No…" John said, eyes shaded, sweating, "No you wouldn't…"

Corey shook his own head violently, eyes closed.

"What about Alic-I mean, Erza, now?" Leo questioned, paying full attention.

Lucy blinked, only able to look at the Souzous. Then, behind Leo, something happened.

"That's it! Let's go!" Macao shouted at Wakaba.

"Bring it!"

Both stepped back from one another, magic seals appearing under them. Just then, Elfman intervened by grabbing each of them and slamming their heads together.

"Don't leave the fighting to yourselves!" he shouted, spin throwing both aside, "Save some for a real man!"

Macao and Wakaba slammed into tables. For only a moment, there was a break in the noise of guildmates chatting...followed by what Lucy could only describe as pandemonium. The guildmates abruptly began to fight amongst themselves. Tables were being flipped, chairs were being tossed about...it was becoming a mess real quick.

"What's happening?!"

She turned, "Does this-"

She couldn't finish her sentence, for John was sent flying over her head. Corey was there, now looking as aggressive as he had before he fought his fake.

"Round two hundred thirty-seven, then!" he shouted, cracking his knuckles.

As John responded by tackling Corey to the ground and attempting to punch the daylights out of him, Lucy could only react with surprise, "Even those two!?"

She turned to the next sane Souzou she could think of-Ivan, only to find him slamming someone's head into a table repeatedly. Ivan turned calmly, adjusting his glasses with his free hand.

"Were you saying something?" he asked.

"No one here's normal!"

"You expected 'normal'?" Leo snarked, dodging a kick from another guildmember. He too, was sucked into the violence that ensued.

Loke punched Wakaba into the bar. This got the attention of a woman with long brown hair, who scoffed at the sight of the violence.

"I can't stand any of the men in this guild…" she stated, starting to chug on a barrel of what Lucy could only assume was booze of some kind.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mage: Cana Alberona~*~**_

Meanwhile, Corey and John were starting to get scuffed up from their skirmish. Corey decided it was time for the hammer to come out, and once again Lucy watched the wireframes come out. However, just as he finished forming it…

Elfman jumped in, punching Corey over the back of the head, decking him.

"A real man fights with fists!" He scolded.

"Yeah!" John agreed, only to find that hammer thrown into his face for his troubles. Ivan, meanwhile, decided to flying kick Elfman in the back of the head.

"What's wrong with kicks?!"

Lucy did what any rational person would do in this situation: hide underneath the nearest table. However, within two seconds of her doing so, John fell, pinned to the ground by Corey. Both turned, somehow noticing her.

"I...really wouldn't do that if I were-" Corey said, completely ignoring the fact John was moving his leg into place...

"Guard's down!" Next thing Lucy knew, Corey was sent flying through the air, courtesy of John's kick. He hit the ground a ways away from them. Ivan too, was sent flying across the room courtesy of Leo's gauntlet hand.

Cana, meanwhile, elected to put her barrel down, standing up.

"Guys…" She drew a single card, holding it above her hand, "It's time to end this…"

Ivan stood, drawing his sword for the second time since coming to the guild hall, his face swelling, "Fine by me…"

Elfman roared as though he were an animal, raising his arm. A magic seal appeared over it, the arm covering itself in stone.

Loke put a ring on his finger, "So troublesome…" A magic seal began to appear over the ring.

Corey stood, a visible lump on his head from where Elfman had earlier hit him, "Alright then…" He raised his hammer, which had somehow gotten back in his hand between when he chucked it over at John, and it began to glow green, like his fist had against his fake.

John had a magic seal forming under his feet, as shadows began to surround him, "Let's finish this with a bang!"

"Oh...now we're talking!" Leo withdrew a cartridge, and plugged it into his gauntlet, a magic seal appearing. All seemed set for an explosive ending, when Lucy noticed a shadow across the room.

A thunderous roar seemed to stop the violence dead in its tracks before magic could be openly used.

"_**ENOUGH YOU BRATS!**_"

All heads turned as a massive shaded giant stomped down.

"He's enormous?!" Lucy shouted, at a total loss. Everyone else stopped what they were doing. Ivan lowered his sword, it tapping the ground. Elfman's fist returned to normal. Corey's hammer vanished, its glow ceasing. John's shadows faded. Leo sighed, his cartridge ejecting.

Loke, meanwhile, already had his arms around the ladies again, "Boy, that sure was scary, wasn't it? Come here…"

"Booze…" Cana groaned, already sitting down and reaching for the barrel.

Lucy slowly crawled out from under the table, sweating at the size of the giant that had intimidated the brawlers.

Ivan eventually raised one hand, resting his other on the sword, "Oh, hey Master…"

"MASTER?!" Lucy shrieked, now gaping at the giant. That was Fairy Tail's Guild Master?

"_**WHO'S THIS?!**_"

At this, Lucy jumped straight up.

"New girl…" Ivan spoke, as casually as though he were sipping from a glass cup.

"_**FFFFFUUUUUUUUUU-**_" The giant began to swear, but for whatever reason, did not finish the statement, waves of wind coming off the massive body. Lucy didn't know what to do but to stare, fully expecting something bad to happen. Instead, the giant began to shrink, and the more it did, the more Lucy felt confusion. Eventually, the giant finished-and was now a small old man.

"Whaaat?!" Lucy shrieked again.

"Nice to meet you…" The old man raised his hand.

_**~*~Master of Fairy Tail: Makarov Dreyar~*~**_

Makarov proceeded to jump up to the balcony, looking over the guild members.

"What am I gonna do with all of you…" He stated flatly, withdrawing several documents from his coat. "I just got more complaints from the council."

"Council...they're in charge of all the guilds…" Lucy said to herself, as Makarov looked over the documents and began to read them out, one-by-one.

"Cana, you were out charging your alcohol to the council again!" Makarov shouted.

"They found out…" Cana stated.

"Loke, flirting with one of the council's granddaughters...Elfman, assaulting a parade float and trying to Take Over one of its arms!"

"It was...so realisitic…" Elfman reflected on the incident.

"And finally, Team Souzou...we had to hear from the council over those fakers who stole your identities and destroyed an entire town...and then while proving yourselves innocent, you trashed their branch castle in Olbesk!"

"In our defense…" John began.

"There is no 'D' in my name…" Corey repeated, his upper face hidden by his hair.

"And, we didn't get charged…" Ivan said, raising one finger. Leo, meanwhile, merely half-shrugged.

"The council members are always angry with me...always threatening the guild with punishments...and all I have to say…" Makarov trailed off, the guild going silent. Lucy felt fear surge within her. What was he about-

"Forget about those damn council members!" Makarov said, lighting the documents on fire and throwing them down. John swiped his arm in response, a tendril of shadows shooting up and piercing the papers, splitting them in two.

"Eh…?" Lucy questioned.

"Listen up…" Makarov started, "You have all come to this guild to further yourself and your knowledge of magic...but magic is born from freedom...your freedom to directly change the world…"

Ivan put his sword on his back, listening intently.

"The council wishes to restrict your freedom, which is a restriction to your magic! To hell with the council that would restrict your reason for being here! We do whatever we want!"

Makarov raised his hand, index and thumb extended.

"That's what we've all done, as Fairy Tail mages!"

The entire guild cheered around her, and Lucy grinned widely…

* * *

_**~*~"And then…"~*~**_

* * *

"With that, you're officially a member of Fairy Tail…" Mirajane explained, as the stamp appeared on Lucy's right hand-pink in color. Lucy looked down, awestruck.

"Whoa…" She turned to the people that had brought her here, ecstatic, "Look, she gave me the mark of Fairy Tail!"

Ivan was slouching sadly, his glasses glared, filling out paper after paper. Corey and John were testing out who could eat the most the fastest, evidently...and it seemed to be a dead heat. Leo was just tapping the table, bored; none of them even looked up from what they were doing. Lucy felt a little...disappointed that they didn't seem to care about it…

"Don't mind them, they've been gone for a while dodging the council after their last mission in Bosco…" Mirajane said casually.

"You mean they went out of Fiore?!" Lucy asked, once more finding herself awestruck.

"Indeed, they were personally asked to in fact…" This response came with a friendly smile...which she usually had on her face anyway. "Ever since joining the guild, they've had such an interest in going all over…"

Mirajane leaned in close to Lucy's ear, and whispered, "Don't tell anyone, but I think they're up there towards becoming Fairy Tail's strongest team…"

"HA!" John shouted, food flying out of his mouth. Corey's face was that of annoyance, his eye twitching, the bone end of a drumstick sticking out of his mouth. Ivan, meanwhile, was far more annoyed, flipping the desk he was sitting at.

"UGGGHHHHH!" A heavily irritated shout ensued from Ivan's mouth; Lucy shot him a look, not quite realizing why…

"Being the leader of the team, Ivan has to deal with all the paperwork…"

"So many bills!" Ivan shouted, "Next time we're doing a mission for a wealthy person," His left hand shot up, index pointing to Corey, "don't throw your hammer into the priceless art! And," Now he pointed at John, "Don't scare a little girl to the point she falls off a roof...with her own shadow!"

Corey and John both looked away. Lucy chuckled as John made an excuse:

"It was a shadow puppet, I was just trying to make her laugh!"

"Not what it looked like to me…" Corey snarked, finishing the drumstick.

"And what do you mean by that?!"

"You said…" Lucy continued, turning back to Mira, "They might be Fairy Tail's strongest team, right?"

Mirajane continued to smile, "They're a pretty rambunctious bunch, but don't be fooled, they're well known for their magic and abilities…"

* * *

_Images began to pop up-a visual aid that would be on what we would refer to as a "Powerpoint Slide". Mirajane began to explain, as Lucy looked on._

"_Ivan, known as the Sword Saint, or he who wields the shifting blade…" _

_A shrunken form of Ivan appeared, swinging a comically oversized version of the sword he was wielding before._

"_His sword can change into different forms, each allowing him to use different abilities." The Ivan began to swing a morphing sword as Mirajane continued to explain, "He's also believed to be tied for Fairy Tail's second strongest swordsman, behind Erza."_

"_Who's he tied with-" Lucy never got an answer; Mira continued to go down the roster._

"_Next, John. They call him the Khalkaroth."_

"_The Callca-wha?" Lucy questioned._

_A shrunken form of John appeared, replacing Ivan. _

"_The Khalkaroth. He used Shadow Magic, from which his is quite unique…"_

_Shadow tendrils and fists appeared around John as Mira continued, "You won't find many users with that kind of magic as destructive as him…"_

_Lucy nodded._

"_Now Leo's the quietest, but he gets his strength from the bonds he's made with everyone here, really…"_

_Leo replaced John in the stage, also shrunken, "They call him the All Fist, a name he gets from being able to use other mages' magics thanks to the gauntlet on his fist."_

_Leo pumped his gauntlet fist in the air._

"_Use other people's magics?" Lucy asked, "How can he do that?"_

"_Well, he's able to generate these cartridges, that store the concentrated magic of others. He has many, filled to the brim with the magic of many of Fairy Tails' mages. He can plug them into his gauntlet, which he can't remove…"_

_The Leo put his cartridge into the gauntlet…_

"_And use it's magic until it runs out!"_

_Purple flames shot out of the gauntlet as Leo continued to pump his fists._

"_Amazing...I've never heard of anything like it…" Lucy said. Then her mind returned her to something else she hadn't quite seen or heard of before either, "What about Corey? I saw him fighting his fake and...well, I wasn't sure what he was doing…"_

"_Corey? Well...I'm not entirely sure. He's called the Lexicon. He uses a magic of his own creation called Java Script."_

"_Java...Script…?" Lucy was confused at the name, "What?"_

"_It allows him to change his own characteristics in a limited way." Mirajane explained, as Lucy remembered the glowing fist technique Corey had used._

_A shrunken version of Corey appeared, throwing glowing punches._

"_But he can also extend that range, and create a sort of zone that he can do the same thing within...Though his editing of other living things is questionable…"_

_A sphere extended from the small Corey, covering the other Souzous. They became covered in red "X"s as Mira continued on._

"_I've also seen him store things, though I'm not completely sure how that works…"_

* * *

Lucy was pulled out the lecture by that revelation.

"He created a magic so complicated all on his own?" Lucy questioned, "That's…"

She turned back to where she knew Team Souzou was.

"Amazi-"

She stopped short.

"Eh?!"

John had Corey in a rather vicious headlock. Lucy couldn't ignore that, and began to run over, panicking as Corey turned blue. Leo merely watched, while Ivan resumed doing his mountain of paperwork. As this happened, Mirajane continued her lecture to herself, nodding.

* * *

"_And with all of them together…"_

_She looked up to her visual aids of the Souzous, who raised their respective weapons in the air._

"_They make Team Souzou!"_

_Continuing to herself, Mirajane thought a single thought,_

"_But...you would have never guessed they'd come so far in half a year, given how they first were when they joined…"_

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Lucy and Mirajane-**

Lucy:"We're gonna see the Souzous when they joined the guild next!?"

Mirajane:"That's right, it's the new arc. The birth of Fairy Tails "Strongest Team", Souzou Origins!"

_It wasn't too hard to power up the laptop and get it booted up-it had been left on, after all. He pulled over his chair as the computer finished waking up._

Lucy:"I bet they looked so cute all young!"

Mirajane:"We're not going that far back…"

Lucy:"Oh…"

_Corey was back to being venomous-Ivan's cue to once again begin tuning the call out. _

Happy:"Who does Lucy thinks cute…?"

Lucy:"Where did you come from cat!?"

Happy:"Lucy rrrriiiiikkeeesss someone~"

Loke:"Oh? Does she now…"

_He was getting ready to test his latest app-an insult generator, when suddenly, a flash filled his vision. He gasped. Once the light cleared, his chair was empty._

Mirajane:"Oh my…"

Lucy:"You guys aren't suppose to be here! This was our first all girls special!"

Happy:"See you guys next time, for the start of the Souzou Origins arc!"  
_  
He opened his eyes-the pupils glowing a dark blue as an image of what he just read went through his head._

Lucy:"Hey, that's my line!"

Happy:"Bye-sir!"

_***~*The End*~***_


	5. An Unexpected Start

**Chapter 5: An Unexpected Start**

* * *

_Several months ago, in a parallel world…_

_Even the guildmates of the Souzous don't know this much about the quartet. They weren't from Earth Land at all-at least, not the one they were most familiar with. They just assumed they were from out of Fiore, and never really thought to look any deeper._

_However, in reality, the Souzous were from a world much like our own. In fact...it was our own._

_This is the story of how these four boys became Fairy Tail's rising stars…_

* * *

Somewhere in this world, a kid with brown hair pushed up his glasses. He had just come home from school, hence the backpack. As he began to walk upstairs towards his room, he smiled lightly. As he passed into his room, he tossed off the pack. Turning to his bed, he retrieved a closed laptop, opening it and setting it down on his desk. It wasn't too hard to power up the laptop and get it booted up-it had been left on, after all. He pulled over his chair as the computer finished waking up.

This was Ivan, in his normal life. And, he shared this life with three others he knew through the Internet-he'd never met them, but he was proud to call them "friend" all the same. They all communicated through Skype, a program which acted as a sort of phone between computers. Speaking of which, it appeared there was a call going on right now.

Ivan clicked the "Join Call" button. Two seconds later, Ivan's chair slid back, Corey's voice yelling loud and clear through the connection at...who else?

"Game's up, John, The Joker is a piece of shit and you know it!"

_What else could Corey possibly be arguing about_, Ivan pondered, his eyes narrowing at Corey's rather zealous attack on a rather popular comic book villain.

"And that's why so many people love him, Corey," John responded, not sounding nearly as fired up as Corey was. "Can't you see it?"

"I see it, alright," Corey was the volcano, erupting right next to your ear, "And I find the concept of liking him to be grade-S bullshit!"

"I don't understand why this bothers you…" John, by comparison, was the lamb.

"We've gone over this…"

"Whatever… Oh, Ivan joined the call." John noted.

"Oh, yeah." Corey was relatively calm now, "Uh...hi Ivan. I was just kindly informing John about how wrong the Joker is as a character and why people should feel even a little bad for liking him."

"You're shouting at a wall…" John quipped, "And Leo...I'm not sure where he is…"

"Every time I come back from b.r.b. you two are talking as stupidly as always…" Leo grumbled, coming back to his computer, Ivan could tell.

"Stupidly?!" Corey shouted again.

"He's not wrong…" John said.

"Ivan!" Leo shouted, "Ivan?! Hey...Ivan?"

Ivan had been knocked back onto his bed from Corey's eruption earlier, and had tuned out the Skype call, fiddling with his phone. Blinking, he realized the argument had more or less been halted, and sat up.

"Ivaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-"

"No, stop…" Ivan cut Leo off mid-statement.

"Hi." Leo said flatly as he recognized the voice.

"Hola…" Ivan responded with one of the few Spanish words that any American would know-also one of the few he'd committed to memory. That class just wasn't going as well as he'd hoped.

"Finally started forty-six…" said Corey, sounding like he was back in the zone. Ivan knew it well-he was the co-writer -slash- editor on that series. For Corey's part, he seemed to know what he was doing without his help.

"Uh-huh…?" Leo asked, not sounding overly enthusiastic-par for the course, really, "Haven't watched it since Shadow's Dark form moment…"

Corey specialized in the crossover department.

"You have a bit of catching up to do then…" Corey responded, the sounds of clicking barely audible from his end.

"Eeeh…" Leo backed up, "Horrible internet...etcetera, etcetera… Not gonna do it any time soon… no offense…"

"Loved that dark form!" John piped in.

"I bet you did…" Corey was back to being venomous-Ivan's cue to once again begin tuning the call out. The call continued without him, as he opened up a manga streaming site.

"Shut up...Dark powers are awesome when used right!"

"Yeah, when used right...which happens less than ten percent of the time…"

One of the things Ivan really hated about the argumentative Corey was the fact he would quote statistics he was sure he was pulling out of his ass.

Ivan continued to browse, stumbling on a rather popular work: _Rave Master_.

_Hmm...might re-read…_

"And yet again, John takes my schtick…" Leo complained.

"...Hm…" Corey said, "Alright, done animating for the day…" More clicking was audible. "Now...to start a coding project…"

Leo grumbled to himself, "Damn internet…"

"Code a vending machine to punch people in the nuts!" John "suggested" as the frantic sounds of typing took over Corey's end.

"Why would it need to punch people in the nuts…?" Corey asked, oddly calm as the typing sounds only slowed.

"The better question would be...why wouldn't you?" John answered with another question.

"You still need to finish my EKG monitor thingy…" Leo cut in at this point. Ivan blinked, surprised.

"Oh yeah...Still trying to work out how the line should move…" Corey said, directed at Leo.

Corey was something of a coding prodigy-he had even incorporated it into his animation.

"But not everyone deserves a punch in the nuts John…" Corey continued, "Though...I do owe you a few."

"Except John...right?" Leo asked. A few moments later, he groaned, "Damned internet…"

Lag was a common thing with Leo.

"Side topic…" John said, "You never showed us what you look like with glasses, Ivan."

"...alright, fine…" Ivan said, bringing the camera on his phone up. With closed eyes and a highly anime-ish smile plastered on his face, he pushed the button.

A flash of light filled Ivan's eyelids-one more powerful than a phone camera would put up. His phone left his hand, hitting the floor…

* * *

On Corey's end, he typed vigorously. He was getting ready to test his latest app-an insult generator, when suddenly, a flash filled his vision. He gasped. Once the light cleared, his chair was empty.

* * *

John quipped "Be right back", entirely oblivious to what had happened on Ivan and Corey's ends. He went for the door, unaware of the light coming up behind him. He reached out for the door handle, and turned it…

Exactly one moment later, the door swung open, but John was not there to walk through it…

* * *

Leo snarled at the blank white page on his monitor. He was in the middle of reading another manga known only as _Magic Warfare_...until the internet crapped out. Left with no other option, Leo began to shout three words.

"God...damned...Internet!"

Leo began to slap his modem around, in hopes that it would teach it a lesson for being so lazy. Unfortunately for him, he didn't notice a light straight away-until it engulfed him, making him vanish from this world as well.

* * *

Ivan wasn't sure how he felt as he flew through this black void; it definitely didn't feel right, though. He opened his eyes-the pupils glowing a dark blue as an image of what he just read went through his head. Ivan looked ahead, realizing he was heading straight for a light. His eyes widened, but when he hit the light, he realized he still had his five senses-he was still alive.

His eyes opened-he wasn't home anymore. His glasses had managed to stay on his face the whole time, but that was hardly a thing-He was in a forest now, after all. He rolled his head to face his right side.

A large, silver sword was stabbed into the ground next to him…

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Ivan and Lucy-**

Lucy:"Wait wait wait, Team Souzou is from another world!?"

Ivan:"God I look so young…"

_The first thing Ivan decided to do was adjust his glasses, as they had fallen askew during that trippy vortex. _

Lucy:"You had never met in person before coming here!?"

Ivan:"Maybe I should start moisturizing…hmm…"

_Not that Leo cared too much about it straight away, struggling to dislodge his hand from the gauntlet or the branches, whichever came first._

Lucy:"But why were you all brought here!?"

_Shaking his head, Leo redirected his attention to the squealing fanboy,_

Ivan:"Lucy, could you stop yelling please?"

_Precisely one second later, both Ivan and John were running full speed down the road, a cloud of dust trailing behind them._

Lucy:"Why aren't you explaining anything!?"

_***~*The End*~***_

* * *

_**As always, drop a review if you made it this far. Noticed reader retention rates aren't too high.**_


	6. They Finally Meet

**Chapter 6: They Finally Meet**

* * *

The first thing Ivan decided to do was adjust his glasses, as they had fallen askew during that trippy vortex. He needed to, so that he could see clearly in this new location. The teen proceeded to reach up, pulling himself up on something he hadn't fully noticed-that blade that had been in the ground next to him. He didn't know where he was-he could tell even without looking around. Suddenly, Ivan took full notice of where his hand was, and jumped back, wide eyed, spotting the impossibly large blade.

"That's…"

* * *

In the same forest, not too far from Ivan, another boy was stirring. His hair was short, yet messy, brown in color-seemingly spiked up now that he could look at himself. And he wasn't fit at all, judging from the bloated mid-section. One of his hands went up, holding his head.

He wore a gray hoodie, a dark gray shirt with three different graphics on it, all green, each meaning "eat", "game" and "sleep", respectively. He also wore dark gray sweatpants and white shoes.

"What…?" His eyes opened-hazel in color. "What happened…? Where...where is this place?"

As he struggled to his feet, Corey groaned to himself.

"Ugh...headache…"

As he continued to rise to his feet, Corey noticed something not too far on his right.

"What…?"

It was a hammer.

* * *

Elsewhere, still in the same forest, not too far off from either Corey or Ivan, another boy was walking about, coming out from behind the trees. Like Corey, he wasn't the most fit person in the world. He wore a black jacket with blue stripes down each sleeve, rolled up to his elbows, with a dark green undershirt. He also wore blue jeans and black shoes with red undershoes. His hair, black, his eyes, also hazel, but with a different color of such than Corey.

Only now, however, did this boy-John-realize where he was, and turned around, expecting to see his room.

"What the…" Seeing more forest, John mused, "H-how did I get here?"

* * *

Still elsewhere in the forest, this time atop a small tree, another teen was there-Leo, stuck in a tree, as his opened eyes told him. He looked down, seeing more branches and the ground a ways off. Trying to wiggle his way out of the situation, he looked up, seeing what was holding him in place.

His hand was caught between two branches, essentially extending his arm out to full length as he dangled several feet above ground. He was sort of thin, silver hair, red eyes, wearing normal person clothes. However, as he looked upon his hand, he realized it wasn't a naked hand.

It had a metallic shine over it-a gauntlet of some sort.

"The hell?"

Just then, the hills came alive, with the sound of…

"_**SQUUUUUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE**_!"

Not that Leo cared too much about it straight away, struggling to dislodge his hand from the gauntlet or the branches, whichever came first. One of the branches that had him caught by the gauntlet broke, and he tumbled down quite painfully, hitting just about every branch on his way back down to the ground.

Leo slowly got back to his feet after that, shrugging off the incident. Finally, he headed towards the scream, trying to take the gauntlet off the whole way there. The scream did not let up the whole way there. When he got there, he noticed a rather familiar face (all those Skype selfies helped to burn the image into his mind)...

It was Ivan, glomping a silver sword, squealing like a fangirl.

"...Ivan?" Leo wasn't the first to ask. When he turned to his right, he saw John, and a bit further away, Corey, also carrying something new: a hammer.

Ivan finally stopped screeching at the sound of John's voice, slowly turning to face the group.

"That was...you…?" Corey asked, sounding shocked.

Leo remained silent, as John looked around, seeing both Corey and himself now.

"Corey...Leo?" John asked.

"Eh…?" Corey questioned, "You guys, too?"

Leo blinked as both John and Corey turned to him, "Uh-hey! I swear to God I had nothing to do with this!"

Shaking his head, Leo redirected his attention to the squealing fanboy, "Ivan…?"

"Oh...hi...guys…" Ivan was still surgically attached to the sword, clinging to it like a monkey to a tree.

"So...uh...why were you…" John began, before doing a double-take, seeing the sword for the first time, "Wait, i-is that…"

"...What is it, John?" Corey questioned, "I've never seen it before."

Leo would have wondered aloud why Corey hadn't yet splattered John all across the countryside with his new hammer yet, but he was far more distracted with what Ivan said next.

"You don't get to touch it. Ever…"

Ivan continued to cling to the sword, it sliding out of place, slanting. Leo slowly began to walk closer, aiming to touch the blade that Ivan so coveted. Of course, this didn't sit well with the kid in question, and he leapt up, still holding the sword with one of his hands…

And his jump carried him ten feet into the air, causing him to stab his newly acquired sword into the tree and hanging there. This gave Leo ample room to be a wise-ass.

"And here I thought I was the tree...hugger…" Leo realized something was wrong with that last sequence; namely, the part where Ivan jumped high into the air, "Wait…"

He then looked to Corey, whose hammer looked oddly familiar now that he thought about it.

"How the hell did he manage that?!" John yelled.

"Guys…" Corey stated, brandishing the hammer, swinging it...rather easily for someone who wasn't known for his exercise, "This hammer feels heavier than it looks...But I'm swinging it like nothing…Something's definitely off here."

"Yeah, no doubt…" John said, "Who knew you could be that strong…"

Something behind Leo thudded, probably Ivan falling off the tree.

"Watch it, John…" Corey snarled, "I'm really not in the mood for your shit…"

"Is this really the time to be fighting like usual?" Leo asked. "We've finally met for the first time, in the middle of nowhere…"

"And there's something else…" John responded, abandoning the impending argument, "Have you really looked around? Something seems to be off with-"

John cut himself off, spotting something behind Leo.

"Ivan...how long are you gonna cuddle it…"

At this, Leo turned around, spotting Ivan, glasses glared, stroking the sword delicately. This in itself was already bizarre, but then Ivan began whispering to the blade.

"Yeah...he's just jealous…" Ivan said, "Are you...really...mine…?"

Leo was feeling pretty creeped out by this display.

John and Corey shared similar sentiments, evidently. The former spoke up: "Uh...anyway…"

"Really, Ivan…" Leo began, "Can we figure this out…?"

_We're all here, in an area we've never seen, our coloration is off somewhat...animeish, perhaps? And...Ivan's holding the Ten Commandments…_ John thought to himself. _Not just that, but using it like it's his…_

Ivan finally quit creepily cuddling the sword, standing, swinging it over his shoulder. He lifted his free hand, curling it into a fist.

"It's clearly a dream," Ivan observed. John wasn't so sure, and quickly walked over to Ivan, pinching him hard. At about the same time, Leo found it perfectly within reason to pinch Corey.

"Hey! He said it!" Corey protested. That sign of protest-plus the fact John's pinch seemed to affect him, caused Ivan to once again begin looking upon his sword with all the vigor of a stalker.

"Is this...real…?"

John quickly took a step back before Ivan continued to get carried away.

"You aren't going to do that with the hammer, right?" John asked for confirmation.

"...No." Corey responded flatly, looking as though he wanted to hit him with the weapon in question. Good for him.

"Anyway...We should try to find a town, or something...Maybe we'll figure out where we are…" John suggested, circling the group back to its main problem: where the hell they were.

"Y-yes, please…" Corey stuttered, looking over to Ivan's sword fetishism with a heavy bead of sweat down one side of his head, "We'd better get going…"

Leo licked his not-covered finger, putting it up to the air. A slight breeze came in.

"The wind's going that way!" Leo pointed out-literally, with the finger that he used for his test.

With that, the four were off.

* * *

A small while later, the four were walking through what seemed to be a beaten path. Ivan was trailing the group, gleefully swinging the sword.

"You know, I'd wonder what he'd do if he's alone with it…" John questioned.

"And this is about the time Corey makes a certain reference…" Leo observed, hands in his pockets.

"Not this time…" Corey twitched.

"Because I'm within striking distance…" John whispered.

"Exactly…" Corey responded, hearing him, "And don't you forget it…"

"You heard-"

"Anyway!" Leo interjected, "Look, there!" He nodded his head towards a sign. John spotted the sign, and quickly ran up to it.

"Hm...Let's see…" He stared upon it for a few seconds before something hit him, and he let out a gasp, "Ivan!"

At this point, Corey and Leo ducked down, Ivan's sword flying over their heads and stabbing the sign, narrowly missing John.

"It slipped!" Ivan shouted.

John blinked, before shrugging off the incident. "Whatever, read this!"

Ivan put his hand on the hilt of the blade, and looked upon the sign.

Precisely one second later, both Ivan and John were running full speed down the road, a cloud of dust trailing behind them.

"Wait! John! Ivan!" Corey shouted, holding up his arm in protest. However his shouts fell on deaf ears, and he began running after them, "Dammit!"

As Leo began to inspect the sign, Ivan ran back, passing Corey, who could only shoot him a dirty look.

"Magnoli-" Leo began, before Ivan nearly slashed Leo in his rush to retrieve his sword, "Ah!?"

Ivan continued to run, passing Corey (who seemed to be running surprisingly well given his size). Meanwhile, Leo's brain processed what he just said.

"Magnolia...Magnolia...Oh!" Leo's eyes widened, and he shot to his feet, "Guys, wait up!"

Corey whirled to Leo, apparently hearing him, "What'd you say?!"

"I said 'wait up'!" Leo repeated.

"Before that…"

"Magnolia…"

* * *

Ahead of them, Ivan and John were neck-and-neck, racing to God-knows-where. Suddenly, both felt themselves slamming into something. A few seconds later, a familiar female voice reprimanded them…

"Running through town is dangerous...especially when carrying weapons…"

Ivan and John were in a headlock by an armored mage. A head of red hair, one eye exposed and looking upon them…

_***~*S-Class Fairy Tail Mage: Erza Scarlet*~***_

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Lucy, Corey, and John-**

Lucy:"Woah! S-Class!?"

Corey:"And so _that woman_ enters…"

John:"To think back then we were so excited to meet her…"

Lucy:"You guys are weird...oh! I'm gonna get to see the Souzous meeting everyone from Fairy Tail next!"

John:"Looking back on it, why'd you get the lamest weapon Corey…"

Corey:"I don't know, why'd you get all the nothing John?"

John:"Touché…"

Lucy:"Why'd some of you get things at all…"

John:"Looks like we're out of time."

Corey:"On to the next chapter."

Lucy:"EH!? Why is nothing explained!?"

_***~*The End*~***_


	7. Welcome to Fairy Tail

**Chapter 7: Welcome to Fairy Tail**

* * *

Neither Ivan nor John could believe it when they read the sign, but now that Erza was right in front of them, examining Ivan's coveted blade, they were completely rendered speechless by the sight of her.

They were in Magnolia Town of the Fiore Kingdom, alright! There was no doubt about it.

"This sword is impressive…" Erza commented, completely oblivious to John and Ivan's predicament.

"Snnggg….hfff...flaaaa…." John's entire vocabulary was obliterated for the moment. He, in that instant, was only able to speak the language of rabid fanboys. Ivan, meanwhile, was right next to him, on his knees, jaw dropped a foot, his eyes converted to stars. And as Erza began to swing his blade around as a test, causing it to vanish from the speed at which she was doing so, Ivan fell forward on his face out of the shock.

And as John began to slap himself in the face to activate his reset button, Corey and Leo finally caught up, the former of whom was breathing a little hard from the effort.

"Finally…" As he looked up, he too, recognized, the character, and his eyes widened. Compared to Ivan and John's reactions, this was considerably more low-key. "That's-"

Leo's uncovered hand quickly shot out, covering Corey's mouth, preventing him from speaking further. It didn't stop him from thinking about what they both knew, though.

_So...we really are…_

Leo slowly lowered his hand, keeping his eyes on Erza the whole time, whispering her name in shock. Finally, her testing of Ivan's sword done, she stabbed the sword directly into the ground, and began to address the group-had she seen the other two?

"So why are you all in such a hurry?" she asked of them. Ivan responded by dragging his body forward, still in fangasm mode. He looked up to Erza, still unable to speak, his starred eyes streaming tears. Eventually, he, like John, decided he needed to perform a hard reset on himself, and figured slapping himself would do the trick. He eventually adjusted his glasses, but still could not speak.

Erza brought her hand to chin, as though she were considering Ivan's incoherency. But there was no way she could understand him, righ-

"I see, you wished to visit the guild?"

"She understood…?" Corey asked, in shock.

"It's Erza...if she didn't understand Ivan's current state we'd have a problem…" Leo stated, which seemed to further draw the female mage's attention to them.

"Oh, you've heard of me?" Erza asked, lifting Ivan by one arm. Ivan was beginning to foam at the mouth like a rabid dog, probably from the situation at hand.

"Yeah, we're…" John paused, seeing his friend's reaction, "...Uh...big fans."

"Excellent!" Ivan was set down on his feet as Erza continued.

"Uh...huh...Well then…" Leo began walking towards, Corey awkwardly following him after a moment.

"If you wish for a visit, I will take you to the guild hall post haste!" Erza said, dragging Ivan, who stood completely straight, dragging his sword and feet. Sparks flew off of the tip of the sword and, surprisingly, his shoes, as he was dragged.

"If he's catatonic now...imagine what'll happen when he sees the rest of the guild…" John observed, beginning to follow.

"Right…" Leo responded flatly, beginning to follow.

After his friends got a few steps away, Corey began to follow them, thinking to himself the whole way.

_Jeez...ran right into things here…_

* * *

A short while later, the group reached the Fairy Tail guild hall. John looked up to the structure, and made a small observation.

_The old guild hall…?_

"Well, here we are!" Erza called out, pushing the doors open with one hand.

The scene on the other side was familiar-the guild hall was ripe with rowdy members trying to kill one another in friendly battles. Leo's eyes widened at the wanton violence.

"Sure enough…" Corey mumbled, though Erza didn't seem to pay much attention to his sentiment. "Just gonna…" John cast a glance back to Corey, who seemed to be hunching over a bit, and not from the fact he was still dragging his hammer. "Yeah."

_Ah, Fairy Tail, don't change…_ John said, taking in the sight of debris flying in every given direction, as Leo and Corey went in ahead of him.

"I'll just…" Leo said, looking around as though he was going to find a space to sit in the chaos.

"How do they function?" Corey's guttural whisper seemed to indicate he was trying very hard to not have attention drawn to them. It was here, everyone, John included, seemed to realize they were forgetting something.

"Ivan?" Leo asked, turning to him, "You alive?"

Ivan seemed to have literally lost any semblance of color, as though someone just dumped bleach all over him, as he was all white now, laying on the ground.

"Oh God…" Corey responded to the sight, facepalming, "Do I need to fetch the defrib paddles…"

"Hm…" John seemed to consider it.

"I'll pump," Leo said, "Who wants to kiss him…"

"Did I hear...kissing?"

At this, the trio who were still not catatonic from the shock of it all turned to their collective right, seeing Loke there with an arm around a girl-and his other around another.

Leo's eye twitched, and he offered his input, "If you like?"

John, upon spotting Loke, began to think to himself, _Wait… he's-_

Corey turned to John and spoke through his gritted teeth. John read his lips fairly easy: the gist of it being that no one seemed to know what they did; about his thoughts exactly.

Leo looked around, one eyebrow creased. John wasn't sure why, but it was almost like Leo was trying to see something…

"Well now, who have we here?"

At this point, the trio noticed Makarov standing right next to the catatonic Ivan. John's eyes went wide from the sight.

_Uh oh…_

"Take cover!" Corey grunted, hiding underneath the nearest table, as Ivan's hand began to come to life.

"Just who are these youngsters you've brought in, Erza-" Makarov's sentence was cut short when Ivan's hand wrapped around one end of the old man's mustache. "I-" Makarov was brought down to the floor, head slamming into the ground, staring into twin stars of whiteness.

"_**Master!**_" This was a loud voice, and one the three knew very well.

Leo slinked off to one side, seeing the impending crisis. Corey ducked down even lower, mumbling the word "shit" as fast as he could repeat it.

"Nope!" John yelled, moving aside as Elfman tore through the crowd, attempting to help the fallen Master. A light shot outward, lifting him from his feet and slamming through a table...into Corey.

"Ow…" Corey groaned, eyes tearing up, flat on his stomach.

Ivan, meanwhile, was being held up to the ceiling by a massive hand, the Guild Hall falling silent as a massive giant now towered over them-Makarov.

"Y-you'll…" John said, walking up to the titan, sweating and smiling awkwardly, "You'll have to excuse my friend here...h-he has a hard time around people he looks up to…"

The titan looked down at John, with large glowing eyes. Ivan fell to the ground not too long afterward, the gargantuan Makarov returning to his normal size, hands behind his back.

"Ah, yes of course…" Makarov quipped.

"Well said...John…?" Leo sounded like he was still thinking.

_That's all it took?_

"Mira!"

John whirled around, seeing Ivan at the bar, greeting all the characters he knew...which wasn't too hard.

"Cana!"

Ivan continued to repeat this process, greeting just about everyone, spazzing out.

A loud groan sounded from John's side, and he turned to see Corey, somehow having pushed himself out from under Elfman and rising to his feet afterward, dusting himself off.

"Ugh...That's the last time I hide under a table here…" Corey said, dusting off.

"Do you even lift, bro?" John asked.

"Don't tempt me…" Corey responded, "Maybe I can polish my John toss skills after all!"

"Bring it!" John said. Just then, there was a terrible roar from behind them, and both froze, Corey's face pulling into a most hilarious grimace.

"Um…" Leo began. He and John wisely split at this point, leaving Corey to his fate, which they assumed was going to be horrible.

While all this happened, Erza and Makarov discussed what was happening with the newcomers.

"I assumed it was alright to bring these travelers here for a visit," Erza stated.

"Yes, of course," Makarov repeated. At this point, he noticed Ivan's blade on the floor, walking over to it. "Did you leave your sword here?"

"That belonged to the eccentric one. I found it quite impressive…"

"...Indeed…" Makarov commented, looking over the blade carefully. At this point, Elfman seemed to rouse himself.

"I misunderstood!" Elfman was now talking to just the one with the hammer-where did his friends go? Elfman was on one knee, bringing himself down closer to his level of height. "You were only here for a tour! I give you my manliest apologies!"

As though programmed to do so, the traveler extended his hand. Too late for anyone to warn him, he found his hand crushed by Elfman.

"...Accepted…" he practically whimpered.

"Speaking of...tour…" the silver-haired one said, looking as though he were deep in thought.

"Pretty good day for it then, everyone's here…" Loke commented.

"Everyone?"

All heads turned to the blade-wielding traveler, who was shaking hands with Wakaba. He looked around, seeming...unsure.

"That's not right...I mean, how could you forget about Natsu and Gray?"

"Who?" Wakaba asked, unsure.

"...the...Salamander? And the Ice Mage."

"I've never heard such men's names!" Elfman commented.

"Wha-?" asked the traveler who was currently wringing his hand, gritting his teeth.

"What are you…" said the one with glasses, his eyes slowly widening.

"I'm afraid you must be mistaken…" The guild master spoke up, his voice showing that he was in no way lying, "No one with names such as those has ever been a member of this guild…"

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Leo and Elfman-**

Leo:"So we ended up at the Fairy Tail guild…to find out Natsu and Gray had seemed to never exist."

Elfman:"Who are such men you speak of? Are they a man?"

Leo:"But everyone acts the same as how we saw them in the series, when Natsu and Gray were there…is it possible they were taken from this world like we were ours? Does that mean at home no one remembers us?"

Elfman:"Your words are confusing me...please explain yourself."

Leo:"It's hard to believe Ivan's fanboying didn't cause any confused thoughts…"

Elfman:"Why are you ignoring me!? That's not a man!"

_***~*The End*~***_

* * *

_**I would like to once again request reviews, simply so I know why people aren't reading too far into this.**_


	8. Travelers' Toll

**Chapter 8: Travelers' Toll**

* * *

"_We stayed at the guild hall-it wasn't like we could stay anywhere else anyway. We said that we were travellers and that we found the sword-and hammer. They bought our story. But… in this Fairy Tail, Natsu and Gray don't seem to have ever existed. They...literally aren't even mentioned...What does this all mean?_"

The sounds of a pen scribbling along paper filled the room; Corey sitting at a sort of desk with a pen in hand. All over the open pages, were random markings and handwriting that barely qualified as anything other than scratch. Behind him was a bunk bed, on which a human-shaped lump was shifting on the top bunk.

Corey tapped the pen on his forehead, annoyed, "Damn, what does it mean…"

At this point, a hand reached down and snatched Corey's pen, "It means it's past midnight and I'm trying to sleep…"

"I'm not used to sleeping, dammit!" Corey snapped back, "Besides, this is serious…"

"You always say that…" John retorted.

"Well, I think…" Corey grabbed for the pen, John moving his hand, "Two big players-" Again, "Missing from a team-give me back the pen-Is a pretty serious matter-If they never-Existed!"

"You're just being paranoid. Now stop grabbing for the pen!"

"I'm not done thinking..."

* * *

"Come on...come on...come on…"

"Ivan, that hurts-"

"Trust me!"

"_**Oh-**_"

"_**Almost there!**_"

"_**You're really not, stop!**_"

_**SLAM-**_"_**What in the name of a man is going on!?**_"

The scene that Elfman was greeted with was considerably better than what he expected. However it still didn't look right. Ivan had both hands on Leo's gauntlet, one leg on the silver-haired boy's chest-was he trying to pull it off.

"I allow you to stay in my dwelling, and you do such disgraceful things!?" Elfman continued onward, "At least the other two can keep themselves quiet!"

As if on cue, John's head slammed through the wall, accompanied by a loud,

"_**Give me back the god damn pen, John!**_"

From his new position, John surveyed the room, before stating, "These are some thin walls…"

"...You were saying…?" Leo asked, turning to Elfman.

Elfman couldn't respond, his eye twitched once. He turned and left.

"Seriously, it's not gonna happen," Leo continued onward, pulling his hand away from Ivan at last.

"But I would look so cool in it!" Ivan protested, his eyes sparkling for the thirteenth time since coming to Fiore.

"It's not my fault," Leo said, lying back, "I'd gladly give it to you if I could…"

"Right!" John cut in. "Well, I'll just… leave you two alone…" A few moments later, his head was out of the hole, leaving Ivan and Leo in their room alone.

"Eh, I'm kind of getting..._attached_, to it…" Leo said, looking over to Ivan, entirely deadpan.

"...I'm just gonna go to bed…" Ivan responded, not in the mood to continue the conversation further.

"You do that…" Leo continued to be deadpan, "I'll just sit here in this corner…"

Ivan laid down in his bunk, placing his glasses upon the nightstand.

"Hey...what…" Ivan started, but ultimately decided...whatever he was about to say, wasn't worth saying, "Never mind."

With that, the teen turned in the bed, and sleep soon consumed him, and in time, his teammates would also fall asleep.

* * *

The rest of the night passed by without further incident. Corey was the last of the comrades to go to bed, and it showed mainly from the still-open journal next to his pillow, pages covered in scribbles that barely resembled letters. He'd apparently given up not too long after the little…interruption he had.

Elsewhere in the house, Ivan was in Elfman's living room, looking around, curiously.

"Ivan, you have risen!" Elfman cheered, seemingly coming in from nowhere on Ivan's left.

"Yeah, wanted to get to the guild hall early today…" Ivan elaborated, feeling like Elfman was stating the obvious.

"But of course! Today is the day!"

Now Ivan was confused, "What?"

"Oh don't play dumb. I made sure to tell you about it!" Elfman began walking out of the door. Turning his head slightly back, he yelled, "Don't forget your sword!"

As the manliest man of beastly limbs left, Ivan blinked, standing idly in the living room, now totally lost.

"I…what…"

Not too long afterward, the four were walking towards the guild hall. Leo, Ivan, and John looked relatively well-rested. Corey, however, was slumped over slightly, eyes half-open, slightly dragging his feet.

"Ugh…" Corey groaned, rubbing one of his eyes, "Remind me why we were getting up early, Ivan?"

"Why wouldn't we?" Ivan asked, "The guild's amazing…"

"I know, I know, but…" Corey was cut off by John, who pointed out something important.

"What's with…that crowd…" he said—a valid point, considering everyone was outside the guild hall.

"…Eh…?" Corey tiredly asked, still not in the mood for a lot of things. Which wasn't all that different from his normal demeanor anyway.

"No sense in waiting to find out…" Leo said, quickening his pace. The others followed, with a voice commanding the crowd to:

"Take your bets!" This came from a blue cat, flying around picking up money from people as they made said bets.

_**~*~Fairy Tail Mascot: Happy~*~**_

"Hm…?" Corey asked, making sure to wake up, "What's he…up to…"

"Oi!" Happy called out, "He's here!"

"Who's he talking about?" questioned John. So far, today was getting stranger and stranger, and the confusion only deepened when Levy walked up to them, seeming to go over her notes.

"I'm not sure if this is courageous or stupid…though according to my calculations…" She looked up, seeming to look at the Souzous in general, "You'll die."

Levy walked away, with an even-more-lost Ivan trying to keep up. It seemed like she was addressing the group, but…

"It almost seemed like she was—" Ivan was cut off by the sight of a giant board with tallies. At the top, read a single line that sent chills down his spine.

_Ivan Vs. Erza_

The tallies were all on Erza's side—a very fair point to make. Ivan's eye twitched as he took this in, turning his head.

"Uh…did we miss something?" John questioned, looking around.

"Hoo…boy…" Corey was now totally awake from that one.

"Well…shit…" Leo whispered, also caught off-guard.

Meanwhile, Erza was sitting the middle of the crowd, sipping on some tea, patiently waiting. Happy took over explaining things.

"Did you forget?" he asked, clearly talking to Ivan now, "After Erza saw you lugging that sword around for a week she wanted to see if you could use it."

"I…I…I…" stuttered Ivan, beads of sweat running down his face.

"She sent Elfman to tell you~" Happy continued, flying away.

"…Wait…" Corey began. All heads turned to Elfman.

"He didn't tell him…" Leo observed.

"It was a manly mistake!" Elfman shouted, and that seemed to excuse him. Corey looked back to where he'd been facing before, and realized something was missing.

"Where did Ivan go…"

Ivan was frantically pushing through the crowd, hoping he could vanish in the crowd and avoid fighting Erza. His reasoning was simple enough:

"Don't wanna die, don't wanna die, don't wanna die!" he shouted repeatedly to himself.

Suddenly, Ivan found himself lifted off his feet. He looked up, and was horrified to discover a certain flying cat floating him back to Erza.

"Happy!?" Ivan shouted, his voice very high-pitched from fear.

"I've got a lot of money riding on you!" Happy shouted, dropping Ivan back onto solid ground. Ivan landed on his feet.

"He has…faith in me…" Ivan was clearly touched by the sentiment, clenching his hands.

"So make sure to lose!" the cat cheerily shouted, causing Ivan to fall over. Meanwhile, Erza finally stood up, placing her tea cup down.

"This…will not…end well…" Leo pointed out, though given the overwhelming evidence, it was pretty obvious.

"That's my line!" John shouted, having been on the verge of saying it himself.

"Such a magnificent blade…" Erza said, requipping a sword, "Please show me a good fight with it."

Ivan pulled the sword out of its sheath on his back—it served the same purpose as the rope that tied Corey's hammer to his back. Only difference was, Ivan recently got it; Corey pretty much made sure to get one as soon as possible.

"I…I…" Ivan stuttered, but gave a shout, "I will!"

"He's going through with this?!" Corey shouted from the sidelines.

Ivan charged, swiping his arm like he was going for a slice…but nothing happened.

"I…what…" Ivan paused, confused. It didn't take him long to realize what happened. The sword he so coveted since the first second of seeing it impacted the ground behind him. Erza's sword was extended.

"Disarmed right away," Levy observed, looking down to her notes, "Should have known…"

Ivan scrambled for his sword, picking it up easily enough. A glint of light reached his eye; Erza lifting her blade. Ivan swung his sword upward, but was easily sent flying by a casual slash from Erza.

* * *

The next few minutes were nothing but Erza casually stomping Ivan. Every single time, Ivan's blade would slip in some manner, usually flying right out of his hands after each encounter. Eventually, John called out to Ivan, in an attempt to stop the one-sided asskicking.

"Ivan, I think you should call it quits…" John said to the panting teen in question. Ivan looked over to John, speaking.

"I…" He cut himself off, turning back to Erza, "Not yet…"

Erza smirked, "I see…"

"He has progressed through manhood!" Elfman shouted.

"What are you talking about?" John asked.

"His sword…" Levy pointed out, as Ivan's glasses gained a glare; the teen suddenly grinning, "It's stopped slipping out of his hand after her strikes!"

Ivan charged at Erza yet again, jumping at her.

_If it's just a little bit…I've definitely gotten…_

Ivan swung downward, his slash blocked by Erza.

_Stronger!_

With a yell, Ivan continued the battle…

* * *

_**~*~"And then…"~*~**_

* * *

A short while later, Ivan was sitting at the bar, no longer wearing his jacket, covered entirely in band-aids. His teammates were close by, and the guild members were gathered around. Ivan's sword was sheathed beside him.

"I'll give him credit, he lasted longer than I thought he would," John observed.

"1.4 seconds longer than I predicted…" Levy commented, "Good job!" She flashed a thumbs up at Ivan, who only lightly groaned in response.

"He says thank you…" John translated.

"...You can understand him?" Corey asked.

"Nay, he says that he will do even better next time!" Erza cut in, to which Ivan gave a sharp grunt of fear, to Erza, this meant only one thing: "I was thinking the same thing! Tommorrow it is!"

Ivan sharply grunted yet again, sounding more like a muffled scream than anything else.

Leo offered his own translation: "He's saying 'Mmm…'"

"Shouldn't he recover a little more…?" John asked flatly.

"I can't see Erza giving him much leeway there," Mirajane observed, all smiles. Meanwhile, Erza was stretching Ivan's arm, the latter tearing up.

"Well, at least it's not us…" John observed, sighing in relief internally. At this, both Corey and Leo looked up to John, the former horrified, the latter, his eyes wide.

"Yeah…" Leo flatly declared, knocking three times on the wooden table they were at, "Better safe than sorry…"

Corey quickly followed, sighing in relief as his fist made three solid strikes on the table.

"Oh, you're just being paranoid…" John sighed. It truly seemed like, at least, the other three boys wouldn't get the same treatment...for about three seconds.

"I've decided!" Elfman shouted. That got John's attention right quick, and he too, mimicked the gesture of knocking on the nearest wood to ward off being harmed.

"The fight today has inspired me to do the very same as Erza!" Elfman turned to the table where the three remaining members of the future Team Souzou were sitting. He shouted a name.

"Corey!"

The male in question completely locked up, uttering what could only be described as a scream that took the form of the least manly squeak imaginable. His face morphed into a priceless expression of shock and more shock.

"Oh thank you…" John sighed, leaning forward.

"Well, well, looks like Ivan won't be the only one reaching 'manhood' today-" Leo attempted to wisecrack about he and John were safe, but...

"John! Leo!" Elfman listed out the rest of their names.

"Dammit…" John groaned, bowing his head. Leo bowed his head too, but said nothing.

"The three of you will be my opponents in a manly battle royale!" Elfman shouted.

"Sounds fun…" Leo mumbled, though it was clear from his posture he wanted nothing to do with this. Corey remained absolutely frozen, but beads of sweat were cascading down his body now. John, meanwhile, thought of an absolutely stellar plan to make his escape from this situation. A plan that would go down in the history books as the greatest way a non-mage ever tried to avoid getting his ass kicked.

"Uh…" John checked his empty wrist, as though there was a watch there, "Oh, look at the time…" John stood up and bolted, "See ya!"

Elfman was far faster-not that it wasn't obvious-and caught John by the leg.

"Nonsense!" he shouted, dragging John outside. John grabbed on the floor, in fear of his life, nails digging into the ground. Leo could only watch. Meanwhile, Corey continued to remain frozen, a puddle forming beneath his chair.

Ivan, on the other hand, was snickering. Erza provided a translation.

"Indeed, I am just as excited as you for this…"

"Is it wrong I'm kind of enjoying this?" Leo asked. With a restrained sigh, he got up, tapping Corey on the shoulder...hard. With his gauntlet hand. "C'mon, let's go. I think John's about to pee himself…"

Corey looked around, as though coming out of a trance. When he saw John being dragged away, he realized what he experienced wasn't a dream. This time, with a sigh of annoyance and fear, he began to follow the train John was leaving for them, followed by Leo.

John summed up his lot in life with two simple words.

"Why me…"

* * *

_**~*~"So…"~*~**_

* * *

"So what did you figure out?" Ivan asked of Levy; the crowd had moved back outside the guild hall. Only this time, the situation was slightly different.

"Three on one…" Levy observed, "The outcome should be quite clear."

"Elfman?"

"Elfman."

"Let's go!" Happy shouted, raising a paw. Elfman took this as the cue to toss off his shirt.

Across from him, were an apathetic-looking Leo, a scared-looking John, and a trying-desperately-not-to-look-terrified-and-failing-at-it Corey.

"How do I wind up these messes…" Corey whimpered, trembling in place, "I haven't fought, ever, in my life…"

"Look, Corey, you know as well as I do we're gonna die…" John had foregone any attempt to sugarcoat the matter, "So if we are, we may as well go out swinging!"

"You're being melodramatic, John…" Leo deadpanned.

"He's four times our size in muscle mass...combined!" John was clearly exaggerating...but the truth was, it was a fair comparison in terms of strength.

"The bigger they are...the bigger they are!" Leo observed, still entirely flat in vocal tone.

"And the harder we're going to get hit…" Corey sighed, "Let's just get this over with…"

Corey reached for the rope securing his hammer to his back, untying it and throwing it aside. Realizing his hammer wasn't even in his hands after this, he quickly turned and picked it up. Leo, meanwhile, shifted his stance. John then suggested a course of action.

"So...Rock-paper-scissors on who goes first?" John asked, entirely smug.

Precisely one game later, John found himself regretting this decision-John had thrown up rock; Corey and Leo had both put up paper.

"Uh...best two out of three?" John asked. Leo responded by pushing John forward-Corey joining him.

"We'll be right behind you…" Corey responded.

"In the hearse, maybe…" It was John who looked ahead at Elfman, Elfman staring back at him. Elfman gave the most intimidating growl ever heard to mortals.

"Men…"

With a deep breath, John rushed forward. True to Corey's word, Leo followed after John. Corey, meanwhile, dealt with an identity crisis.

_What am I doing what am I doing what am I doing…_ At this point, his left hand-his free hand, came up, punching him straight in the face, restoring him to his senses. Having impacted his reset button, Corey abandoned his personal issues with the crisis at hand, and opted to not look like a total jackass.

"_**Leeroy Jenkins!**_" Sadly, this was the best battle cry Corey had in his head.

Meanwhile, John punched at Elfman-Elfman countered his punch with one of his own. Elfman went in to punish John some more, but John pulled his hand back, holding his wrist, one eye tearing up.

"Dear God, it's like I just punched a wall!"

On another note, Elfman didn't get to continue the attack, since Leo ducked in under John's arm as the punches impact. Leo went for an uppercut. Elfman merely stepped in, avoiding Leo's attack, uppercutting John in the stomach as he went. At this point, Corey jumped up a rather impressive height (for him), bringing his hammer down, looking about as confident as expected in his attack-confident by pre-mage Corey standards anyway.

Elfman didn't even flinch as he caught the hammer and flipped Corey over, tossing him into the ground.

"Nope...Didn't work…" Corey whimpered, just before flailing on the ground in pain.

Leo managed to recover, leaping at Elfman, gauntlet arm ready to punch. At the same time, John managed to recover, jumping up for an uppercut. Elfman stepped back. Leo kicked off the ground, launching at Elfman, swinging his elbow out. A freshly recovered Corey got to his feet, still with the impeccable look of confidence up, as he executed a sideways swing with a hammer, opposite Leo's attack.

This turned out as well as expected-Elfman grabbed both attacks, slamming them into one another, pulling Corey off-balance and causing Leo to hold the now badly hurt elbow in pain. Both boys grunted-Corey in surprise and Leo in pain.

While both busied themselves with recovering, John tried to blindside Elfman with a punch to the side of his face. This still didn't work-Elfman merely slid his foot so that he'd hit John's leg; this caused him to lose his balance and miss.

"Dammit!" John grumbled, landing on the ground. As the three continued to recover, Elfman decided to give his two cents on the fight so far.

"Your effort has yet to impress the manly side of me!"

Corey got to his feet, clearly dazed, holding his hammer awkwardly, his eyes crossed from...mostly pain.

"Give it time…" he quipped. And yes, that was the best one he had thought of. Leo, meanwhile, attacked instead, kicking off the ground to charge forward. Elfman turned, attempting a punch. John kicked at the back of the large man's knees. This, combined with Leo's shoulder roll under the punch, left Elfman off balance slightly. Leo sprung back into a stand, two fingers on his gauntlet hand extended-a pressure point strike attempt.

Elfman gave a shout, allowing himself to fall, elbow dropping the ground. This created a blast of rubble sending the other three flying. Corey hit the ground, bouncing once. He managed to get the head of his hammer down, sliding to a halt and shakily getting to his feet. John skidded to a stop on the ground, the hands he used bleeding from the effort.

"Well that was...effective…" John observed. Like he "observed" that tree a couple of days back…

"Long way to go huh?" Leo questioned, having not even bothered to stop himself. Elfman casually got to his feet, standing at the center of a crater, cracking his neck.

"Sounds about right…" Corey responded to Leo's question, getting to his feet.

"Just like Erza," Ivan observed from the sidelines, "Doesn't even need to use magic…"

"Outmatched in every way," John said, "But I'm having so much fun…"

"Guess that's why I keep getting up…" Corey grumbled.

"Come on then!" Elfman shouted, beckoning the trio, "come at me!"

John merely grinned and charged, uttering but an ultimatum, "One hit...if I can land one hit, I'll see it as a win!"

Corey readied himself, waiting for John to complete his attack. Leo, meanwhile, rushed past him, eyes furrowed. A few moments later, Corey followed Leo's lead. John jumped up, throwing a punch as he came down, but found himself clotheslined-Elfman swung out a perfect lariat, knocked him down. John was knocked back as a result. Leo sprang forward, following after John's less-than-productive lead, hands out a bit.

Corey, at the same time, swung his hammer down early, using the momentum from the strike to try for a kick. Elfman lifted an arm, blocking the foot. His other hand reached forward, grabbing Leo by the head. John rushed in, shouting a battle cry.

This went well. And by that, I really mean Leo got chucked into the onrushing John, much to the former's displeasure.

"Dammit John!" Leo shouted.

"How is this my fault?!" John yelled back, pushing Leo off and rising to his feet. Leo got to his feet as well.

"Oh, just shut it!" Leo called out, charging at Elfman again while rubbing his now very sore neck. Corey, meanwhile, retrieved his dropped hammer, feeling it was a lifeline for him in this battle.

_Nothing works!_ Corey thought to himself, lifting it up. He then rushed up to Elfman, this time swinging the hammer upwards. This failed, as Elfman moved his head back...and then plunged it forward, sending Corey away yet again.

"It's a massacre!" Happy cheered, his forepaws going up in the air.

"Well of course," Levy stated, "No matter what way you look at it…"

John rushed past Leo, throwing his hands forward to once again be met with Elfman's own. This time, the two got into a test of strength.

"Elfman's ten times stronger than any normal man…" Levy trailed off.

Elfman had quickly pushed John down to a knee. When it looked like John would totally give out, though, John spoke up. Three words.

"Not. Done. Yet!" John began to push back, just barely getting himself off of his knee.

"Maybe...but…" Ivan started, as John took a single step forward, Elfman sliding back a little. "I wouldn't consider any of us normal since we got here…"

Corey stood up again. His eyes were closed, seemingly thinking to himself.

_All this time, I've been overthinking…_ The boy began to grip his hammer tight, his knuckles going white from the force he was gripping it, _It hasn't gotten me anywhere! Instead...instead of knowing...I have...to feel it out. Instincts…_

Corey opened his eyes, taking in the scene before him.

Leo had managed to come up behind John, grabbing onto John's shoulders and jumping forward, feet heading straight towards Elfman's face. Elfman ducked to the side, breaking off contact with John and stumbling, but dodging Leo's attack nonetheless.

"Tch!" Leo grunted, grumbling a swear under his breath, but that didn't matter. John lowered his body under Elfman, and brought his fist up, harder than ever. Elfman's eyes went wide, and he quickly threw his hand out, slamming John away.

"So close-" Ivan started, but the sentence broke off in his mouth as he took a second look. Elfman's face suddenly contorted, and his stomach cratered in as though an attack had actually hit him, but nothing was there that could be seen.

Corey saw his chance.

_Now!_

Corey rushed in, faster than he had performed in this battle, taking another sideways swing with his hammer. Elfman managed to block the hammer shot, but the defense turned out to be a double-edged sword, his arm slamming into the side of his face and sending him skidding on the ground.

Leo had jumped up, seeing the same opening Corey had seen. He was falling down upon Elfman now, his gauntlet arm coming down hard, a war cry echoing from his mouth. Elfman lifted his arms into a cross block but it was no use. The punch bypassed his defense, hitting him in the stomach. Dust flew up from around Elfman from the force of the impact.

The crowd was utterly stunned at what had happened, their eyes wide. Levy looked back and forth between her papers, wondering what she didn't factor in. Ivan, who had been more or less standing close to her the whole time, was grinning.

"Who'd have thought…" he said.

Leo jumped back off of Elfman, exhaling slightly. Corey lowered his hammer, breathing hard. John raised a fist into the air, cheering.

"We did it! We all got our hits in!" John yelled.

Elfman had gotten to his feet quickly enough. He lifted his arm slightly, and a pulse of power came off of it.

"Shit…" Corey panted, utterly unable to come up with anything better to describe the situation at hand.

"You all went all out and managed to land a hit," Elfman said, not sounding the least bit winded after all that. "Now it is my turn!"

"Well...it was great while it lasted…" John sighed. Leo sighed as well, squinting his eyes. Corey closed his eyes, cradling his hammer in his arms and clasping his hands together.

"Beast Soul~!"

* * *

_**~*~"And then…"~*~**_

* * *

Everyone had once again returned to the bar, the future Souzous now all sporting bandages, next to Ivan.

"You all fared well, but the true manly victor was decided!" Elfman shouted.

Corey muttered something, but it wasn't even translatable to anyone that could hear him. He was in far too much pain to say anything else, really.

A ways away, Erza and Makarov were discussing matters-more specifically, the brawls from today.

"So, they did okay against you and Elfman...without magic…" Makarov observed, taking in the account Erza had fed him. Erza, however, didn't look entirely convinced of this.

"Yes…" Erza turned slightly, looking to John. "Without magic…"

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Ivan and Levy-**

Ivan:"Ah yes...back when I couldn't hope to defeat Erza…"

Levy:"You still can't hope to defeat her…"  
_Corey looked up as the Shadow Gear mage Jet spoke up, warning the four...well, to not get in their way on their mission._

Ivan:"I know…"

Levy:"Are you crying?"  
_Ivan adjusted his glasses as one of the people in the conversation spotted Ivan and his sword, moving away not too long afterward._

Ivan:"No!"

Levy:"No, i'm quite positive you-"

_Corey rubbed his brow, looking as though he were trying not to turn the gesture into a salute in recognition of being acknowledged by the mayor._

Ivan:"NEXT TIME, TEAM SOUZOU'S FIRST MISSION!"

Levy:"It was Shadow Gear's mission…and don't change the subject…"

_Ivan sat on the chair adjacent to the guilty-looking male._

_***~*The End*~***_


	9. Pull Some Weeds?

**Chapter 9: Pull Some Weeds?**

* * *

_The spars we did became a regular thing. We were stronger than we were back home-not that it wasn't obvious after I, Corey, of all people, managed to cause Elfman to slide a few feet with a strike from a hammer. We were stronger here, and I know we are going to keep right on getting stronger, too. _

_I'm not gonna lie, it's been tough hanging around the guild and getting used to things, but I know we'll manage somehow. We have before…_

_Stakes are a lot higher though. Anyway, I've got to go. Till I get back,_

_-Corey_

* * *

"Just don't get in the way. This is official guild business after all…"

Corey looked up as the Shadow Gear mage Jet spoke up, warning the four...well, to not get in their way on their mission. The four of them and the official team were in a carriage enroute to a destination.

"No need to be so harsh, they're here to help out after all…" Levy pointed out.

"Yeah, Jet!" Droy shouted, before going into "doting fanboy" mode, "Oh, you're always right, Levy…"

"How did we end up tagging along, again?" John asked, turning to Ivan, who had taken up his role as the leader of the foursome by this point.

"Makarov thought we should get out some…" Ivan responded flatly.

"You mean away from the beatings…" said John matter-of-factly. Ivan scoffed.

"Speak for yourself, I'm down to 17 cuts per match…"

"And I'm getting…!" Corey started, losing steam as the memory of still being punted around came back to him, "Better…"

"I think I prefer the beatings," Leo cut in, "The soreness feels good to work out."

A silence followed, a silence so awkward it was practically a crime.

"I know what I said…" Leo put his hands behind his head.

"Right…" Corey stopped giving Leo an awkward glance and turned towards Team Shadow Gear, trying to change the subject, "So what are we supposed to be doing exactly?"

"Apparently there's been problems with a magical plant that we figured Droy could take care of. We'll get more info once we get into town…."

"I see…" Corey said, still hung up on the "magical plant" thing.

_Don't make the joke, Corey. You're not in __**your**__ world anymore…_

"Just leave things to me, Levy!" Droy shouted confidently.

"Hey, don't get too cocky, Droy!" Jet said, turning to him, "This'll be a snap to get rid of with my speed!"

"I know more about plants than you do!"

As the two Shadow Gear mages argued, John began to speak up.

"Well, Jet's right, we're all here to-" John started.

"But Droy's the expert on plants…" Corey cut in, "We should leave things to him…"

"What, and do nothing?!"

"You idiot, John! I'm only saying he knows more about plants than most of us…"

That got the two of them going. Leo, Ivan, and Levy could only watch as the simultaneous arguments turned into a singular shouting match.

"Were we really like that, Ivan?" Leo asked, turning to the boy in question.

"I don't remember if we were or not…" Ivan responded.

"No, I think we were…"

* * *

As the carriage shakes back and forth from the constant yelling, only two words come to my mind right now...

Poor Levy…

* * *

_**~*~"And then…"~*~**_

* * *

The group had arrived at the city where the mission was to take place. Ivan looked around, taking in the sight of the ghost town-like everyone else was. Ivan's eyes fell on two people, and he began to tune into their conversation.

"Everyone's already moved themselves away from the west side of town...the thing's getting closer…"

Ivan adjusted his glasses as one of the people in the conversation spotted Ivan and his sword, moving away not too long afterward.

"Dammit!" John shouted, drawing Ivan's attention for a couple of moments-John's pants were down to his ankles. "This is the third time since we got here! What the hell!?"

"It's because your pants are too big!" Droy pointed out.

"But.." John looked down, seeming to finally notice his body fat had vanished over the past week. He could only blink.

"And I'm the oblivious one…" Corey said flatly. The drawstring in his sweatpants had been pulled out as far as it could go, enabling them to stay on, but his shirt and hoodie looked extremely baggy.

"Solid Script!" Levy shouted, sweeping her hands in front of her, "Belt…"

The word formed into multiple instances of the word "Belt" that connected together into...well, a belt.

"Here you go…" She handed the belt to John, who began to pull up his pants and put on the belt.

"Uh...thanks…" John was far too focused on his fatless body to care. Leo could only look with a neutral expression on his face, letting out a sigh.

* * *

A short time later, the seven arrived at a building. A man walked out, pretty well-dressed considering the fact the town was a ghost town.

"Yes...you must be from the guild...please come in," He stated.

Corey could only nod.

"About time…" he mumbled, "Wonder what the problem is…"

"Didn't you hear, Corey?" John asked, "It's just some weeds…"

"Looking around, I'm not so sure…" Leo replied.

All seven were lead to a large room towards the center of the building. A man was standing near the window, just as well-dressed as the first man. Another man sat on a nearby couch, considerably worse dressed. The latter man looked...guilty, to say the least.

The man by the window turned to face the seven after some time, walking towards them.

"Ah, hello. I am the mayor of this humble little town…" he said as he shook Levy's hand.

"Yes, we're Team Shadow Gear of Fairy Tail...well, and company…"

"Splendid." The mayor smiled to the others.

"Likewise…" John said.

Corey rubbed his brow, looking as though he were trying not to turn the gesture into a salute in recognition of being acknowledged by the mayor.

"Now, I do encourage you to sit down…" the mayor continued, walking around the room a bit. Everyone began to take a seat, Corey and John went to sit next to the man already on the couch. He moved closer to the corner, avoiding eye contact. Ivan sat on the chair adjacent to the guilty-looking male.

"Now...one month ago, this man, Wallace, planted a certain plant in the forest surrounding the town…"

Wallace looked down, his eyes covered in shadow, as the mayor went on.

"It has since become...quite a nuisance…" The mayor summed up, frowning in disgust towards Wallace.

"What, so you made a C-Class quest to get rid of a few weeds?" Ivan asked, summing up the conversation Corey and John had just a few seconds ago.

"The request said the plant was of a magical variety...I'm sure it's not as simple as a few weeds…" Levy summed up.

"Then what's the plant…?" John asked.

"Omnes...Viride…" Wallace responded, causing all eyes to turn to him. Droy's eyes became wide with fear.

"You're kidding!"

Wallace looked down towards the floor, clearly ashamed. Droy, meanwhile, stood up.

"Please tell me that's a joke!"

"No joke," the mayor said, clearly showing a rising fury in his voice, "This man has introduced _**that**_ on the people of this town!"

"Omnes...Viride…?" Corey repeated, still stuck on the name.

"What now?" John questioned.

"Uh...and this means…" Leo finished.

"If Omnes Viride has been active for a month...this is no C-Class quest…" Droy summarized.

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

_**-Our Hosts, Lucy and Elfman-**_

Lucy:"Omnes Viride? Is that dangerous?"

Elfman:"Why was I not invited on this Man-Class quest!?"

_At this point, the man in question stood quickly, walking out of the room as fast as possible._

Lucy:"I...what?"

Elfman:"I'll have to give Levy a piece of my mind!"

_Ivan charged in, his teammates following behind him, Corey pulling out his hammer, Ivan beginning to reach for his sword. _

Lucy:"Right...well I can't wait to see what happens next!"

Elfman:"I'll be waiting like a man for what happens next as well!"

_It didn't take them long to reach a dome of plant life. _

_***~*The End*~***_


	10. Omnes Viride

**Chapter 10: Omnes Viride**

* * *

"Where could you have even gotten your hands on that!?" Droy yelled, interrogating Wallace. Wallace, however, said nothing, continuing to look down on himself.

"Just what is Omnes Viride…" Ivan said, asking the obvious question.

"It's a magical plant...the 'All-Devouring Green'..." Droy explained, "It absorbs the nutrients of all living things around it, growing bigger and bigger, taking in more and more… until nothing is left."

"Why would you plant something like that here!?" Jet grilled Wallace. At this point, the man in question stood quickly, walking out of the room as fast as possible. Ivan watched him leave, a calm expression on his face.

"Good riddance…" the mayor stated, drawing the group's attention back to him, "Now, back to the request-"

"Why did you lie…" Levy interjected.

"Pardon?"

"You classified this as a C-Class quest. But something like this is surely higher…"

"I-"

"A higher ranked quest would mean he'd have to pay more…" John pointed out.

"And more negative attention would be brought to the town…" Ivan finished the summary of the mayor's risk analysis. It was Droy who spoke up again.

"If Omnes Viride has had a month to grow, you're lucky this town still exists!" he scoffed.

"Jet, could you-" Levy didn't even get to finish.

"On it, Levy!" Jet saluted, speeding out not too long afterward.

"We'll talk about the reward later, for now, people are in danger…" Levy brought her hand to her chin in thought.

Corey, meanwhile, had his eyes closed, the lids twitching. All he could think about right now was a tree...and the plant was of might...The story was similar in theory, but he opted not to pursue it any further than that.

"How are we supposed to stop a plant...when it's big enough to threaten a whole town?" Ivan questioned.

"It should still have a sort of center, where all the nutrients are brought to...I feel like there's a detail about that, but I don't-I can't remember," Droy explained.

"So it's got a weak point?" John summarized.

"Basically, but-"

"So we have a target," Ivan said, standing up, "Things just got a whole lot simpler…"

"Hey, don't forget you're not mages!" Droy pointed out yet again, "You're only here as onlookers!"

"The quest rank is higher than you expected and I can only assume backup would get here too late...what other choice do you have?" John questioned.

"Not to mention, we are technically here to help," Leo spoke up as he stood up along with the rest of his comrades. Levy saw the determination in their eyes, and sighed.

"No use arguing with them…" She smirked, "Let's go!"

* * *

_**~*~"And then…"~*~**_

* * *

The six remaining members of the unit known as "Team Shadow Gear and Company" began to run through the town. All of them looked worried now.

"Jet should have checked back in by now!" Levy pointed out.

"Do you think that the plant got to him first…?" Corey questioned.

"Not sure that the plant's sentient…" Leo responded.

"When I said the plant absorbs living things' nutrients…" Droy stated. At this point, the group had reached the point where the town became a forest, "I really meant...it seeks them out…"

"It's aggressive…" Corey summarized as the group surveyed what had become of the plant. It wasn't a regular plant anymore, but a massive jungle of moving vines, roots, and trees.

"And probably something you could have said earlier…" John said, turning to Droy.

"R-right…"' he said, looking slightly down.

"Well, even if it's aggressive…" Ivan stepped forward, one lens glared from an unknown light source. "So am I…"

A cry of pain was heard from within the forest. The others immediately took a stance.

"That was him!" John said, being the first to state what was obvious: Jet was somewhere in that forest.

Ivan charged in, his teammates following behind him, Corey pulling out his hammer, Ivan beginning to reach for his sword.

"Are they insane, rushing in like that?!" Droy shouted.

"Not sure insane's the right word…" Leo said, bringing up the rear of the future Team Souzou.

"I can't believe them…" Droy continued, shaking his head lightly.

"Yeah…" Levy grinned, "They'd fit right into Fairy Tail, wouldn't they?!"

The remaining two members of Shadow Gear took off not too far behind Leo.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ivan was running, vines shooting out toward him. Ivan grabbed the hilt of his sword.

"Alright...for the first time against something other than Erza…" The teen pulled out his sword, spinning around as vines surrounded him, "Eisenmeteor!"

He sliced the vines to shreds as they approaching, keeping his pace.

"Follow Ivan's lead!" Corey shouted.

"Show off…" John grumbled, more to Ivan than Corey.

Vines shot out at Corey, who dodged, slamming his hammer down on a couple as they came, crushing them flat under the swing.

Leo, meanwhile, was pulling off some epic parkour to avoid the plant gone wild. He grabbed at a vine with his gauntlet hand, beginning to swing about.

Ivan, at the lead of the group, stopped at a clearing in the jungle, skidding to a halt. Another scream of agony sounded, and Ivan looked up. Everyone else caught up, and saw it too. Jet was suspended high in the air, glowing green with his mouth wide open.

"That can't be good…" John observed.

"Thank you, John, I would have never guessed…" Corey responded.

At this point, a dozen or so vines shot down at John and Ivan, the latter readying another slash. Corey began to raise his hammer as well, but didn't get to complete that move before...

"Solid Script: Fire!" Levy shouted, throwing several words made of fire at the vines, intercepting them, both vines and words exploding in flames.

"Careful, getting yourselves trapped as well won't do any good," she warned.

"Not good!" Droy interjected, pointing out Jet's precise situation, "They're absorbing his Magic Power! No doubt this will increase the Omnes Viride faster than anything yet…"

"And now that it's had a taste," Ivan said.

"It will only want more…" John finished, as more vines began to come down.

"Fire!" Levy tossed out more words. However, instead of blowing up the vines, the vines simply caught fire, but the fires soon went away.

"It absorbed the heat…!" Levy observed, eyes widened slightly.

"It can adapt too!?" Leo shouted, looking over to Droy. However, it was Ivan who suggested a course of action.

"We have to get to Jet…"

John cupped his hands, crouching down, "Need a boost?"

Ivan smirked, taking John's offer and being sent flying up. Levy had to pause.

"That strength, those spars with Elfman did wonders…" Levy noted.

Vines swooped down towards Ivan. Ivan sprung up in midair, grabbing one with his hand...and regretted it for a bit, wincing for a few moments as his hand began to glow blue at the contact. He moved up, getting his feet on the vine before jumping off of it.

As Ivan began to go through the nest of vines, cutting and/or jumping off others as he went, Droy made an observation.

"Is this really the same newbie that showed up to tour the guild!?"

"Solid Script: Ice Sword!" Levy said, using her magic to create a sword made of ice to John. John caught it easily enough, but fumbled with it for a bit as he made an obvious observation.

"Ah, that's cold!" John grumbled.

Ivan, meanwhile, had managed to reach Jet. Aiming to free him, he swung his sword up, but missed, stopping dead in mid-air, a vine wrapped around his ankle. He grunted in surprise two simple words.

"Damn it-"

"Ivan!" Corey gasped.

"I don't think so!" John said, running up the side of a tree before jumping off towards Ivan. More vines tried to converge on Ivan from another direction, but Ivan sliced at them easily enough while upside down. Using his ice sword, John cut Ivan out of his predicament.

"Nice!" Ivan cheered, "Now…"

Ivan put his feet to John's feet, both males grinning, Ivan adjusting his glasses. John pushed hard, sending himself up and Ivan down, spinning with his sword out and cutting nearby vines. With a war cry, John managed to free Jet from the plant.

"Amazing!" Droy cheered, throwing seeds, "Holder Plants!"

The seeds quickly sprouted into multiple giant leaves, cushioning Ivan's fall as well as John with the drained Jet.

"That was awesome!" John cheered.

"When we were right in the moment," Ivan observed, "I didn't even have to think…" He exhaled.

"All instinct!"

"Uh, guys…" Corey interrupted their celebration, pointing up with his free hand, "Forgetting...something…?"

The vines above wriggled in the air, the plant clearly far from dead.

"We better keep moving!" Levy reminded the group.

"But we don't even know where the heart of this whole mess is…" Corey stated the apparent problem as he looked around.

"He's right…" John said, gritting his teeth.

"The vines had to come from somewhere, right?" Leo cut in before an argument could erupt, "Couldn't we follow them?"

"I can still sense Jet's Magic Power now that it's flowing through the plant…" Droy stated. Ivan nodded, taking charge of the situation once again.

"Lead the way...we'll cover you…" Ivan said, kicking off a grand adventure...

* * *

As Droy lead the group, Ivan and John cut numerous vines and Corey smashed stuff. Droy freaked out at several hazards along the way-when he wasn't being impressed at Leo's mad Parkour skills-even with a half-dead Jet on his back. However, Levy did most of the heavy lifting, clearly saving the group members' asses at several occasions through the trip.

* * *

It didn't take them long to reach a dome of plant life. In the center of this dome, was a large glowing bulb, from which all plant life came from it.

"That must be the heart…" Corey noted.

"I've used up a lot of Magic Power…" Levy said, panting a bit.

"That doesn't sound reassuring…" Leo sighed, sweating just a little, Jet still on his back.

"Now that we're at the center...and the last of Jet's Magic Power has reached it…" Droy observed, "We're right in the most dangerous part…"

"No question it's gonna be pulling out all the stops now…" Corey observed through gritted teeth.

Vines shifted around the bulb and dome, as the core of the Omnes Viride plant glowed ominously…

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, John and Leo-**

Leo:"You know...tossing me the sword of ice would have made more sense…"

John:"Well..what are you gonna do…"

_Corey started, just before spikes began to shoot out from all around them, _

Leo:"I suppose you're right…"

John:"I was cooler then you would have been anyway…"

_John used his ice sword to cut it in half._

Leo:"Now wait a minute!"

John:"You mad? Well let's just see who did better against Omnes Viride!"

_Those with binoculars or a very keen eye could just make out several distance specks managing to stay on a branch. The plant had grown into a tree._

_***~*The End*~***_


	11. The Core of the Plant

**Chapter 11: The Core of the Plant**

* * *

The group stared upon the core, fully realizing the weight of the situation they were in. However, they all knew what they came here to do. With this in mind, it was Ivan, of the six still able to fight, that rushed forth.

"Better not give it any time, then!" Ivan shouted as he went forth. He didn't make it more than ten steps before the ground at his feet rumbled. It didn't take long before the ground burst up, knocking him over.

"What the-" Corey started, just before spikes began to shoot out from all around them, the Omnes Viride directing its attack for them-"Ack!"

Levy moved to protect her friends within range: "Solid Script: Guard!"

This time, she threw out two large words: "Guard", which morphed into barriers, protecting the group from the spikes. Well, Ivan wasn't around the group. Ivan tried to recover from the fact he was knocked off his feet, and found himself repeatedly cut up by the projectiles surrounding him, his clothes containing a lot of tears in them as he hit the ground once again.

"Ivan!" Leo called out.

"Dammit!" Corey grumbled. Meanwhile, John tried to go to Ivan's aid. However, where the ground had tripped Ivan, something large burst up out of the ground. It was a massive venus flytrap, and it didn't look like it was in the mood to wait for its next meal.

"That can't be good!" Corey called out.

"It's also in our way!" John pointed out, continuing on course. Leo and Corey followed, with Corey raising the most pressing issue at hand.

"I don't know how we're going to get to that heart…"

"You're the one with a hammer!"

"Alright then…" Corey somehow managed to toss his hammer dramatically and catch it with his other hand. He hunched over, preparing for an attack, "_Why don't I just pound my way in?_"

An awkward silence ensued. Leo acted as though he'd slipped on a banana peel, falling backwards.

"Watch your mouth!" Droy shouted as Jet groaned, "Levy's right here!"

Levy just looked flat-out annoyed, while Ivan groaned from behind the flytrap. Even the flytrap seemed to be annoyed now, a sweatdrop running down one half of its head.

"I'll work on it!" Corey yelled, embarrassed at how bad that oneliner was. John offered some sage advice regarding Corey's career path.

"Don't!" John responded, jumping at the flytrap before Corey could respond.

More vines descended, with Levy quickly throwing more all-purpose words at them, taking out a good deal of them.

"I'll handle the vines-"

"We will!" Droy interjected, throwing more seeds.

"Thanks!" Corey shouted back, jumping up as he had intended to before, bringing down his hammer on the flytrap's head hard enough to visibly crater it. John used his ice sword to cut it in half. However, this did little for Ivan, who hadn't moved since spikes impacted him-a bad thing, considering the grass was growing around him now, enveloping him.

"Ngh, Ivan!" Leo said, aiming to get over there and help Ivan out somehow. However, someone beat him to the punch.

"Come on!" The next thing anyone knew, someone was pulling up Ivan-that someone wielding a machete.

"Whose-" Levy started, confused. However, she quickly recognized him from earlier…

"You're…!" Corey began.

"Don't stand still for even a moment!" Wallace shouted urgently, jumping around with Ivan in tow.

"Omnes Viride didn't go after him when we were present…" Droy observed, attempting to do as Wallace advanced, "Due to his lack of Magic Power!"

"But why-" Levy started, only to be interrupted by John.

"Why're you helping us? Isn't this all because of-"

"You think I don't feel bad?" Wallace questioned, "You don't understand…"

Ivan's eyes flickered slightly, but it wasn't yet his turn to act.

"You don't understand the truth about Omnes Viride!"

The others began to take Wallace's advice. Vines were smashed, spikes were defended from, and at least one more flytrap met its end. However, suddenly, the ground beneath the group's feet began to shake violently. The ground cracked audibly, and everyone looked down, concerned.

Suddenly, everyone felt as though they were on an elevator, rapidly ascending upward on unstable ground. The ground itself was becoming replaced by stuff that did grow on trees-bark, moss, more bark, and the like.

* * *

From the distance, the few people still in town could see a truly disheartening sight. They knew it was the plant someone had planted. At the very center of it all, held up by a massive tree, was a massive dome.

* * *

"I don't…" Droy started, "How…"

"Is it possible…" Levy panted, clearly tired, "It's been...absorbing our Magic Power...without the direct contact…?"

"You're always within direct contact," Wallace summed up grimly. It was then, something clicked within Levy's mind-the others realizing it not too long afterward.

"The grass…"

"No…" Corey grunted, "Dammit! It was unavoidable."

"Not only that...but I think Levy's nearly exhausted her own supply covering us…" John stated.

"And now," Wallace interjected, "This entire area is Omnes Viride's, what I can only assume, final stage."

"From the looks of it, a tree…" Corey observed, looking around, "...Still, we're about where we need to be…"

Ivan finally stood up, pushing off of Wallace, "You know so much about Omnes Viride...you must have known what would happen…"

Wallace's eyes were now shadowed, that grim look refusing to leave his face.

"And yet, he's here…" Leo said.

"I didn't know the exact diameter that it would grow...all I wanted, was exactly what comes next…" Wallace looked up, addressing the group, "I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt! I promise you!"

Ivan raised his head upward, his glasses definitely crooked now after all that had happened so far. Everyone else turned their heads towards the center once more, when the dome itself began to shake around them.

"What now…?" Corey grumbled.

* * *

In the distance, the people watching the out-of-control Omnes Viride could only watch in amazement and terror as the dome began to break apart, snapping apart into multiple branches. Those with binoculars or a very keen eye could just make out several distance specks managing to stay on a branch. The plant had grown into a tree.

* * *

Everyone had barely managed to avoid falling off the plant, everyone close together, separated by maybe a few branches. For the first time in a while, Ivan had been separated from his sword, the blade caught in a branch not too far off from him.

Ivan looked down at Wallace from a higher branch, his eyes calm.

"You planted this here, not knowing it would reach anyone else...because of what comes after this final stage?" he questioned. Wallace said nothing.

"But now, you have to understand...that we're destroying it...before it can us…" Ivan summarized.

"Yes…" Wallace croaked.

"Alright…" Ivan responded, having got his answer. He jumped down, leaping towards his sword, retrieving it with a little bit of effort. Everyone else relocated to different branches behind him, readying for the final assault.

"Everyone ready?" Ivan asked, in total control.

Corey gave a small grunt in agreement.

"As if you have to ask…" John responded.

"Of course," Leo began, "Sooner we're done, the better. The residues are starting to make me itch…"

"Then, let's charge right to the core," Ivan stated the simple solution, "Slash it, punch it, slam into it, whatever it takes…"

Ivan leapt forward, leading the charge. Levy was, for the second time that day, slightly annoyed with a male.

"What do you think you're doing, suddenly making yourself in charge…"

"Yeah...force of habit…" Ivan smirked.

"Yep, force of habit," Corey affirmed, following Ivan's lead.

"Seeing as you've been covering our asses-" John started, following the two.

"Literally, in your case…" Corey snarked, John ignoring him.

"Maybe it's our turn…"

"You know, Droy?" Leo began, ready to follow, "I think you were right earlier…"

When Droy could only respond with a half-blank look, Leo gave his answer.

"We are insane…"

With that, Leo began to follow his future team.

Vines began to shoot off of branches, venus flytraps bursting forth, plants preparing to shoot spikes at the group. The vines came forward first, with Ivan slicing them to ribbons with a few quick motions. The Venus flytraps came next, supported by their own vines. John continued past Ivan, slicing them in two with his borrowed sword.

A plant with spikes prepared to swell, ready to shoot. Corey crushed the problem before it could start, moving past the now pulpy remains of what was once a threat. Leo ran down along the bark, smashing into a flytrap's side.

Wallace took this in, smirking just a little, "Just who are you guys…"

Ivan cut another spike plant in half, clearing the path for advancement.

"Just keep moving forward…" Corey started.

"With everything we've got!" Ivan shouted, continuing Corey's line of thought.

An entire branch swung at them, Ivan grabbing his sword with both hands, gritting teeth. He jumped off the next branch, cracking it, veins on his arms now visible through the tears in his shirt. He swing his blade, cleaving the entire branch in two despite its size.

"And let nothing get in our way!" John continued off of where Ivan had left off.

"Whatever it takes!" Leo finished the train of thought, just as Corey leapt up off another branch, bringing his hammer down on another flytrap's head, snapping its head in half, effectively killing it. The path was now completely clear, everyone closing in on the core with a shout.

_**CLLLLLLCK…**_

The bark of the tree exploded at this moment, vines shooting out. All of the group from Fairy Tail were immediately overwhelmed by the sudden counterattack.

Ivan sharply grunted as his body was constricted, his sword covered by the vines. Corey's hammer was caught in a similar manner, his body constricted.

"Shit!" Corey shouted, effectively summing up their situation.

John's arm was free, but useless, the rest of his body unable to move anyway. "We were...so close!"

Leo's eyes were wide as the vines began to overwhelm him too.

_D...dammit! I-_

The vines tightened around him, all that could be seen was his left eye. Suddenly, a faint purple glow began to emit from the small opening. John took notice, confused.

"Huh…?"

Leo somehow managed to flashstep out of the vine's grasp, now flying through the air. Corey, Ivan and John were stunned.

"What-" Corey started, confused.

"We still have a chance!" John shouted, managing to get enough leverage to chuck the ice sword to Leo. "Take it!"

Leo caught the blade easily enough in his gauntlet hand, kicking off the nearest branch and charging for the core, making a desperate slash-

The ice sword made impact, but the blade only cracked and shattered. No damage was inflicted to the core at all.

Leo's eyes were wide now, more with fear than anything else, "You...you have got to be kidding me…"

John grit his teeth.

"Dammit…" Corey grunted again.

Ivan's eyes had momentarily widened from the shock. Now, however, his head dropped, glasses falling an uncountable number of feet to the ground.

John silently gritted his teeth, unable to believe what had happened.

"It can't be...here?" Ivan asked, the vines beginning to constrict, going for the kill. "Now?"

"I...I…"

Ivan's hair suddenly began to float up.

"No! Not here!" He lifted his head, eyes glowing bright blue, his hair moving upwards.

"_**Not now!**_" The vines around the Ten Commandments exploded violently into a mass of flames, freeing Ivan in the process.

"D-Did he…?" John grunted, barely able to make out what had just happened.

Ivan swung a mass of flames around, vines burning all around him. His sword eventually doused itself, more or less, revealing its new form-it was now bright orange, and much thinner than before.

"He's using his Magic Power!" Levy screamed over the din, as vines began to shoot forward towards the free Ivan, who made one last charge. Ivan swung his sword, vines exploding on impact.

"Ten Commandments!" Ivan shouted, bringing his arm back for a throw. He only had one shot, "Second Form!"

He made a desperate throw, Leo, seeing what was happening, quickly moved out of the way. Ivan was once again swallowed by the vines. However, his attack had made its mark, the sword stabbing into the core.

"_**Explosion!**_" An explosion went off at that point, sending Leo flying back towards another branch. A light began to come off of the impact point…

* * *

The crowd, which had begun to fear there was no stopping the Omnes Viride, were met with a refreshing and hope-giving sight: a massive explosion of light surging outward from the tree…

* * *

_***~*Super After Chapter Special!*~***_

**-Our Hosts, Corey and Ivan-**

Corey: "And that was how Ivan first used his Magic Power…"

_At this point, Team Shadow Gear walked in, bandaged appropriately for their wounds as the Souzous were._

-Ivan shoves Corey out of frame-

Ivan: "I know! Definitely outshone everybody there!"

Corey: "Don't get too far ahead of yourself…"

"_Of course," Wallace said, "These tough kids' old man wouldn't bite it that easily…" Despite his light tone, he looked...sad, even as he messed with his son's hair._

Corey: "This was still before we became full-fledged members of Fairy Tail…"

Ivan: "Well, that's about to change…" -Glasses shine-

"_Omnes Viride intakes all nutrients from the environment, so that it can reach its final form, and after that…"_

Corey: "Anyway, the aftermath of Team Souzou's first mission and what it meant for them, up next!"

"Sorry about the delay!"

"_Quite...though…" Makarov's smile quickly faded, "I'm afraid this can never happen again…"_

* * *

**And indeed, I am very sorry about the delay. Updates will definitely become more sporadic now.**


End file.
